Digital and ICT investments

The DTA provides strategic advice and assurance to the Australian Government on its digital and ICT-enabled investments to help drive the transformation of public services.

On 15 April 2021, the Government amended the DTA’s mandate. From 1 July 2021, the DTA’s new mandate includes managing strategic coordination and oversight functions for digital and ICT-enabled investments across the project life cycle.

We do this by:

• providing advice to agencies developing business cases, new policy proposals, and Cabinet Submissions, to ensure they align with whole-of-government digital and ICT policies, priorities, and standards
• providing advice to the Government when deciding on new digital and ICT-enabled investment policy proposals
• ensuring agencies plan for assurance activities and overseeing their application during delivery
• collecting regular project performance reports from agencies and providing advice to the Government on the overall health of its entire digital and ICT-enabled investment portfolio.

A digital and ICT-enabled investment is an investment which uses technology as the primary lever for achieving expected outcomes and benefits. This includes investments which are:

• transforming the way people and businesses interact with the Government
• improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the Government’s operations, including through automation.

Whole-of-Government Digital and ICT Investment Oversight Framework

To give effect to the new mandate, the Government has developed a Whole-of-Government Digital and ICT Investment Oversight Framework to manage its digital and ICT-enabled investments across lifecycle. Agencies are required to work with the DTA to ensure all digital and ICT-enabled investments are planned, developed and implemented in accordance with government requirements.

Proposing new digital and ICT investments

Agencies must consult the DTA at the earliest opportunity when developing digital and ICT-enabled investment proposals to seek advice on alignment with the Government’s digital and ICT policies and best practice. This includes the ICT Investment Approval Process.

If your agency is planning or delivering a digital or ICT-enabled investment, you will be required to meet mandatory assurance requirements to secure confidence in delivery. These requirements are detailed in the Assurance Framework for digital investments.

The Department of Finance is responsible for providing guidance on budget processes, and for agreeing to policy costings. Agencies retain responsibility for delivering digital and ICT-enabled projects.