News item | 04-11-2022 | 15:20
On the proposal of coordinating minister Van Huffelen (Digitalization), the Council of Ministers has approved the work agenda for a safe, inclusive and promising digital society. In this first work agenda, the government has further elaborated and specified the themes of ‘digital foundation’ and ‘digital government’ from the outline letter of 8 March. This makes it the first step in the concrete implementation of the government’s ambitions for the digital transition of the Netherlands.
Van Huffelen: “It is high time that we, as a cabinet, took control of digitization. As a coordinating minister, I want to safeguard our characteristic Dutch values such as security, democracy, self-determination, privacy and transparency. That is why I am focusing on digital skills, the ID wallet, combating disinformation and regulating algorithms in this agenda.”
Digital Skills
The government will add digital literacy to the curriculum for primary and secondary education, so that pupils have sufficient skills at an early stage to make optimal use of the possibilities offered by digitization. In every labor market region, there will also be an easily accessible training offer for re-scholars and school-leavers to learn advanced digital skills in, for example, artificial intelligence (AI).
wallet
A European framework for digital safes (id wallets) is being built and a public example wallet is being developed. The proposal is to get the agreements on European ID wallets working by 2025. The State Secretary has set an even more ambitious deadline for the Netherlands: she wants to have a first trial version of a public open source wallet working by 2023. In this digital safe you can store, for example, a driver’s license, diploma or insurance data.
Fighting disinformation
The government wants to reduce the spread of disinformation. This is done, among other things, by the recently enacted Digital Services Act. The purpose of this is to regulate online platforms and better protect consumer interests online. In addition, the government itself will deploy and encourage (public) safe alternatives for online platforms and services at public institutions.
Hallmark algorithms
Controlling your digital life means, among other things, that people can trust that digital systems, including algorithms, comply with public values and that people understand how they work. We do this by making the government’s use of algorithms transparent in an accessible algorithm register. On the basis of the European AI Act, certain algorithms are banned and we require that algorithms with a high risk for humans receive a kind of quality mark (CE mark) and are registered in a European database. The government will also conduct human rights tests on algorithms.
In addition, five concrete goals have been set in the agenda:
Everyone can participate in the digital age
About 2.5 million people lack sufficient digital skills or tools. As a result, they get stuck in their work, in education, in the workplace and in arranging their affairs with the business community, the government and other institutions. So we ensure that online government services are understandable, accessible and easy to find. And that people who have difficulty with it can get help.
Everyone can trust the digital world
For trust in the digital world, it is necessary, partly on the basis of the introduction of EU regulations, to proactively focus on guaranteeing privacy, preventing discrimination, combating the online spread of disinformation and creating a safe(r) digital environment for citizens and businesses. We pay specific attention to protecting children, the elderly and other vulnerable groups.
Everyone has control over digital life
Many people have no idea what data organizations collect, trade or sometimes lose about them. The use by governments and industry of algorithms and their ‘decisions’ gives them the feeling that they are losing control. That is why there will be an Algorithm Register in the Netherlands. We keep track of the use of algorithms within the government. In addition, work is being done on a high-quality identity system, with, for example, login means and a wallet.
A values-driven digital government that works for everyone
Problems with IT systems and the role of data in, for example, the allowance affair, have damaged trust in the (central) government and its digitization. We want to change this and set a good example as a government. In this way, the information management for public administration is improved.
Strengthening the digital society in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom
Citizens and companies in the Caribbean Netherlands must be able to participate equally in the digital society. That is often not the case yet. Government services are not yet optimally organized and digital government is still in its infancy. We are moving forward with this. We bring the service to an equivalent level as in the European Netherlands, both digitally and physically. Where possible, the actions from lines one to four of the work agenda also apply in the Caribbean Netherlands.
Big ambitions
The government is looking beyond its term of office and is looking ahead to 2030. The work agenda has, with good reason, great ambitions. During the realization, all parties involved will continue to seek the right balance between ambition and feasibility, in addition to the tasks that are already being worked on. This is also reflected in the annual update, because digitization requires permanent attention, flexibility and adaptation. The work agenda has been drawn up in close consultation with the local authorities and provides guidelines for the digital transition and digitization in the various policy domains of central government.