NSW plans $100m Digital Restart Fund

The New South Wales Government has allocated $100 million in seed funding over the next two years to establish the Digital Restart Fund, an initiative to support whole-of-government digital transformation.

The Digital Restart Fund will be used to fund digital transformation projects that will enhance the customer experience, including the adoption of common platforms across government to remove duplication and increase efficiency, according to Treasurer Dominic Perrottet.

He said the fund is aimed at taking the state’s digital transformation “to the next level” following the establishment of its Service NSW approach to digital service delivery.

The Service NSW model has proven so effective that the federal government aims to take a page from it during the development of the planned Services Australia division.

Perrottet noted that Victoria has also ben copying the state’s approach since 2015.

Meanwhile, the latest Budget also includes $400 million over the next four years for improving connectivity in regional New South Wales.

The Regional Digital Connectivity program includes $90 million in funding to fill all mobile blackspots in regional NSW. This will be part of a four-stage investment program that will also include investments in new data hubs and fibre backhaul infrastructure for the state.

Dubbo and Wagga Wagga will be the first locations for the deployment of data hubs and fibre infrastructure. The project will also focus on improving the productivity and competitiveness of the state’s farming industry.

Image courtesy NSW Government.

Please follow us and share on Twitter and Facebook. You can also subscribe for FREE to our weekly newsletter and quarterly magazine.