Government fine-tunes Digital Agenda for 2016-2017
The Dutch government wants to make the use of open standards mandatory for public administrations, to provide business and citizens with easier access to eGovernment services. The government is developing a generic digital infrastructure, and its services and standards are to be used by all public administrations, writes Henk Kamp, the country’s Minister of Economic Affairs in a letter to Parliament.
A proposal for a law on the generic digital infrastructure will be submitted to Parliament before the end of the year, writes the minister. Services will need to be defined independently of technology, to avoid having to change the law whenever the technology changes, the minister adds. He expects the law to improve eGovernment services for companies, increase trust in online payment systems, and help digitise services that currently require visiting public administration offices.
The announcement is part of the Digital Agenda for 2016 and 2017, which was published by the Economic Affairs Ministry in July.
The document outlines the government plans for:
- Education, knowledge and innovation;
- A fast and open infrastructure;
- Security and trust;
- Space for entrepreneurs; and
- Digitalisation of industry, health care, energy and mobility.
The ministry also made available three more documents related to the Digital Agenda: a review of nine projects to boost the role of ICT, a study into the economic feasibility of a Dutch computer security sector, and a report on energy management systems in non-residential buildings.
More information:
Letter to the Parliament (in Dutch)
Announcement by Forum Standaardisatie (in Dutch)