Data and Digital Government Strategy
The Australian Government released its final Data and Digital Government Strategy on 15 December 2023. This Strategy outlines the Australian Government’s vision to deliver simple, secure and connected public services through world-class data and digital capabilities by 2030.
The Australian Government is committed to a modern public service that will make effective use of data and digital technologies so everyone’s experience with the Australian Government is inclusive, accessible, and responsive to their needs.
The strategy will support the Australian Government to build and maintain public trust in its use of data and digital technologies, including emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence. It is accompanied by an implementation plan outlining key actions the Australian Government is taking to achieve the strategy’s 2030 vision. Finance and the Digital Transformation Agency are co-leading strategy implementation, and Australian Public Service agencies are aligning their own enterprise data and digital strategies with it.
Since the release of the initial strategy in May 2023, achievements include:
- publication of the Charter of Partnerships and Engagement in November 2023
- launch of a new Digital Service Standard in December 2023
- roll out of the APS Data Maturity Assessment Tool in May 2024
- release of the Framework for the Governance of Indigenous Data in May 2024
- passage of the Digital ID Bill through Parliament in May 2024 (with commencement of the legislation on 1 December 2024)
- release of the Digital Experience Policy in July 2024.
Other significant milestones have also been met since the strategy’s release. In January 2024, Australia was ranked fifth in the 2023 Digital Government Index by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.
Further, the National framework for the assurance of artificial intelligence in government was agreed to at the Data and Digital Ministers Meeting, and released in June 2024. It establishes cornerstones and principles that demonstrate how governments can practically apply Australia’s AI Ethics Principles to their assurance of AI.
The implementation plan will be updated yearly to:
- highlight new data and digital initiatives across government
- identify emerging trends and technologies in the data and digital environment
- report on the government’s progress in achieving the strategy and outline the focus and objectives for the next year.
The Data and Digital Government Strategy is an initiative under the APS Reform program.
Stakeholder feedback received through public consultations in June and July 2023 was used to inform the development of the strategy and implementation plan.
Find out more
Australian Government (n.d.) Data and Digital Government Strategy website, accessed 3 July 2024.