The Australian Department of Communication, IT and the Arts
(DCITA) has put up A$70,000 (CDN$59,192) with the aim of
kickstarting a national coalition to boost the ICT capacity of
nonprofit organizations.
Community Information Strategies Australia Inc. (CISA) won the
publicly advertised tender to lead the project that includes Monash
University's Center for Community Networking Research, WorkVentures
Australia, the Nonprofit Roundtable, Albany Consulting and
Energetica. Reference group members include IBM, Cisco, Microsoft,
Non-Profit Australia, Our Community and the Australian Information
Industry Association (AIIA).
Doug Jacquier, chief executive officer of CISA, said the aim is
to devise a sustainable model for ICT delivery that will improve
operational efficiency, deliver services and support and help build
networks in the not-for-profit sector.
"Non-profit organizations represent around 5 percent of
Australia's GDP and deliver many services on behalf of
governments," he said.
"We are looking to encourage government and business investment
in not-for-profit ICT capacity, which is common practice in other
countries. This initiative is a hopeful sign that the commonwealth
government and the corporate ICT sector have been listening to us
and are prepared to look at options for helping us to help
ourselves."
A DCITA spokesperson said the funding is in response to research
that shows there are a range of barriers to full adoption and
effective use of ICT within the sector, including access to ICT
infrastructure, hardware and appropriate software, access to
reliable technical advice and support, technological literacy, cost
and a lack of overall strategic direction.
"This has resulted in the uneven adoption of ICT across the
sector which has impacted on the full potential ICT has to offer,"
she said.
After a series of national consultations, Jacquier hopes to set
up a similar coalition to UK ICT Hub (http://www.ictconsortium.org.uk/).
The government has not committed to any ongoing funding, but
Jacquier is hoping to net around A$8 million over the next two
years, which will be injected back into the ICT industry.
"We'll be seeking funds from some of the corporate players and
from state governments to assist wherever possible in making it a
broader process and to broaden our research base. Doing an
Australia-wide consultation is an expensive and time-consuming
process," he said.
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