The South Australian Office for Digital Government is brushing up its digital credentials. The state’s “digital declaration” is spearheaded by Premier Jay Weatherill.

The South Australian government is walking the talk around its digital strategy. A flurry of digital announcements is setting the scene for an online, mobile and tech-savvy administration. Premier Jay Weatherill has committed front-line agencies to an ambitious digital transformation blueprint. 

This initiative is led by the Office for Digital Government that seeks to keep the broader policy “Simple, Smart and Digital.” The Department of Premier and Cabinet’s chief operating officer, Phil McMahon, is a keynote speaker at the FST Government Western Australia conference being held Wednesday 16th March in Perth. 

South Australia’s declaration of “digital by default” acknowledges that digital technology is critical to modernising and transforming public services. This commits the administration to proactively transform services using digital technology.

These digital platforms are supported by readily-available online, mobile-ready, easy to use and accessible services. Another “declaration of open data” nurtures an open, transparent and fully-connected government.

Among the state’s priorities, the Department of Premier and Cabinet is spearheading an open data agenda. It has published 139 of its own data sets. Open data is accessible via a dedicated site. 

The department notes that opening up government data creates new opportunities. This also empowers citizens, supports research and more readily engages developers in the creation of digital apps.

Among the initiatives, an SA Map Viewer has been developed enabling businesses, industries and the community to easily access, view and leverage the state’s spatial data. The eProjects Panel is being expanded to streamline procurement processes. This initiative seeks to minimise costs to the ICT industry when responding to tenders. The aim is to reduce red tape, including the amount of time, effort and resources needed to respond to multiple government tenders and transacting with agencies.

Across-government ICT procurements are expected to deliver an estimated cost reduction of $46.1 million over the next five years. This is in addition to the $234.3 million in actual savings already achieved since 2007 through a redefined strategic ICT sourcing. 

Some useful links around SA’s digital engagement include the Government Social Media Directory, the global government directory and organisational chart and GovChat. The popular YourSAy enables South Australians to share input into policy and service delivery.