New Zealand’s Digital Council, an advisory group set up to advise the government on how to maximise the benefits of digital and data-driven technologies, will have its final meeting today. 

The Digital Council was established in late 2019 before the formation of the Digital Economy and Communications portfolio. 

“The last few years have been something of a digital revolution for the world. The COVID-19 pandemic made all of us re-think how we learn, earn and socialise – forcing us to embrace digital technology faster than we otherwise would have,” Minister for the Digital Economy and Communications David Clark said. 

“When the Digital Council first came to be, government had disparate digital work streams. Since then, we’ve come leaps and bounds and a lot of that is thanks to the advice of the council.” 

Part of the council’s work programme was focused on helping shape the Mahi Tahi (inclusion) and Mahi Tika (trust) pillars of the recently launched Digital Strategy for Aotearoa and its action plan. 

“Now this has been delivered, it feels like an appropriate time to disestablish the council and thank its members profusely for their dedicated time and effort. They have been a real catalyst for change,” Minister Clark said. 

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The NZ Government has also established an interdepartmental Digital Executive Board to coordinate delivery in the Digital Economy and Communications portfolio and lead the implementation of the Strategy and its action plan. 

The Digital Executive Board’s members are Chief Executives of the Department of Internal Affairs; the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment; the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet; and Statistics New Zealand. There will also be an independent advisor to the board that is external to the public service. 

Work is also underway to pull together an independent group of data ethics experts with the expectation of launching a data ethics centre in the New Year.  

A council will oversee the centre and will consist of experts who value data and technology. Aside from undertaking research, they will also provide advice on ethical dilemmas and what support tools are needed to encourage best practices when new technology is deployed. 

Source: Inside Government NZ. Content has been edited for style and length.

Eliza Sayon

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Eliza is a content producer and editor at Public Spectrum. She is an experienced writer on topics related to the government and to the public, as well as stories that uplift and improve the community.

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