New Zealand eyes billions in savings through centralised technology procurement
The government of New Zealand expects to save NZ$3.9bn (US$2.2bn) in the next five years by centralising digital investment and procurement.
Under changes announced by Judith Collins, minister for digitising government and the public service, the government chief digital officer (GCDO) will lead digital procurement decision-making on behalf of most public service agencies and crown entities.
The government expects that taking a centralised approach to procurement of digital tools could save up to 30% on the projected NZ$13bn (US$7.5bn) technology spend across the public sector in the next five years.
To date, government agencies have bought their own IT and the move also aims to improve interoperability of systems.
“This potentially saves a huge amount of taxpayer money – and that’s money that can instead be spent on delivering better public services, for the benefit of all New Zealanders,” said Collins. “Siloed, bespoke technology solutions will be a thing of the past. Our target is a citizen-focused, digital-first public service like we see in other leading digital nations.”
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International inspiration
Collins highlighted Estonia as an example of a country that achieves “significant, ongoing savings and productivity benefits thanks to their efficient digitised public services” and one that New Zealand hopes to emulate.
“The GCDO will develop and deliver a range of key digital tools on behalf of agencies, including the NZ Government App which will allow New Zealanders to receive secure notifications from government agencies,” Collins commented. “It will also allow people to store their digital identity documents, choose who they share them with and, in future, make payments for government services from their phones.”
“We want to see our public sector offering better, faster digital services for New Zealanders – but I would also note that services will continue to be available through traditional means,” she added.
Paul James currently holds the GCDO role and is also the secretary for internal affairs.
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About Sarah Wray
Sarah has over 15 years’ experience as a journalist with a specialism in the public sector and topics such as digitalisation and climate action. Sarah was formerly the editor of Cities Today and Smart Cities World, as well as a specialist video-based publication in the aerospace sector. She has also written for publications including Smart Cities Dive, Mobile Europe, Mobile World Live and Computer Weekly.
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