The New Zealand government's vision for the country's information society is wide in breadth, covering many different areas of society. These include but are not limited to:
• s Government entities• s Research and development• s International trade• s Economy• s Society and culture• s Infrastructure• s Court/Justice system
There are several public agencies responsible for leading New Zealand's quest to "become a world leader in information technology". What exactly New Zealand means by "world leader in IT" is unclear. They compare themselves in this field mainly to the United States, Canada, and Australia, but have not defined "world leader in IT" in any of the literature this author has read. The public agencies responsible for this undefined quest include:
• s E-government• s Ministry of Research, Science & Technology (MoRST)• s Foundation for Research, Science and Technology (FRST)• s Ministry of Economic Development• s Ministry of Commerce• s Ministry of Communications
E-GOVERNMENT
"The overarching vision for electronic government in New Zealand is to allow the easy flow of information within and between government organizations, and between government and people, both those who use the Internet and those who don't." 11 New Zealand's e-gov site is up and running and they hope that by 2004 the public sector will be running as one integrated unit. The broad structure of the integrated organization will include the following layers:
1. sAccess (Channels) Layer2. sAgency Delivery (Information, Services and Processes) Layer3. sAgency Infrastructure (Business) Layer4. sCommon Infrastructure (Foundation) Layer
The E-government Unit of the State Services Commission heads New Zealand's e-gov web site. New Zealand's strategy for developing e-government is a four-phase model commonly used by other countries. These phases are:
1. sWeb presence2. sInteraction3. sTransaction4. sTransformation 11
MINISTRY OF RESEARCH, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY (MoRST)
"MoRST is a New Zealand Government Department which develops research and innovation policies and manages the publicly funded part of the RS&T system on behalf of the Government. MoRST works at the high level of policies, strategies and statistics. It contracts other agencies such as the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology to manage the actual funding of research and innovation projects." 12
Some policies and areas of research that MoRST focus upon include but are not limited to:
• s Science in society• s Biotechnology• s Biosecurity• s Nanotechnology (the study of atoms)• s Cultural Development/Enhancement
MoRST Strategies 13
MoRST has four key strategies to inspire and assist New Zealanders to create a better future through research and innovation:
1. sWe will align Government's research and innovation policies with needs in the community. Some of the policy areas we will focus on are:
• s building technological capability to boost economic growth• s understanding social systems to improve social well-being; and• s increasing knowledge of our environment and natural resources, to support sustainable development.
2. sWe will involve New Zealanders, New Zealand industry and international partners in research and innovation. In particular, we will develop ways of working more closely with:
• s community groups• s the education and health sectors• s businesses• s other government departments and agencies researchers; and• s international groups.
3. sWe will show New Zealanders how research and innovation improve our lives, environments and enterprises. People in New Zealand have a low appreciation of how research and innovation can benefit them. We will work to overcome this by creating new ways of:
• s communicating the benefits of research and innovation• s involving New Zealanders in setting future agendas for research and innovation; and• s providing better assurance that risks and ethics issues associated with new technologies have been adequately addressed.
4. sWe will build our capability to define, design and deliver world class research and innovation policies, paying particular attention to:
• s improving our understanding of research and innovation, and its implications for New Zealand;• s implementing new research and innovation policies in ways that deliver more benefits to New Zealanders;• s building partnerships with a wider range of groups in the community and especially with Maori.
FOUNDATION FOR RESEARCH, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (FRST) 14
"The Foundation for Research, Science and Technology (FRST) invests in research, science and technology (RS&T) on behalf of Government to enhance the wealth and well-being of New Zealanders. As the largest single investor in RS&T, it plays a key role in facilitating participation in the achievement of economic, environmental and social benefits."
Responsible for investing approximately $400 million of public money per annum, the Foundation aims to stimulate prosperity and improve the well-being of New Zealanders and the environment through investing in innovation and fostering the creation of new knowledge. The Foundation invests its money through a number of funds and schemes:
• s Five 'public good' related science and technology output classes (the former Public Good Science Fund)
• s Technology New Zealand
• s New Economy Research Fund
• s Grants for Private Sector Research & Development
• s A range of scholarships and fellowships (includes Tuapapa Putaiao Maori Fellowships)
The Foundation invests via a range of schemes. Their place in the innovation spectrum within Vote: RS&T is shown below. Schemes invested by the Foundation are shown in yellow (excluding the Health Research Council (HRC)).
