I was in Estonia again recently, and every time I go, I am amazed at how deeply that forward-thinking Baltic country has embraced the digital world.
What accelerated the digital transition, of course, was the need to dump everything Soviet when independence was re-gained in 1991, from the currency, to laws, government services and banking systems – everything.
Estonians carry a universal ID smart card, which, with a digital card-reader, can be used for electronic voting in Estonian elections from any computer anywhere in the world. The card is also used for accessing and verifying one’s information in all government databases, paying taxes online by electronic funds transfer, accessing heath records and services and processing transactions with one’s proprietary digital signature.
The banking system is Internet-based. A single bank account can be used for processing transactions and payments in multiple currencies. Virtually all business invoices are emailed in digital form and contain bank account info for electronic funds transfer and for posting to all needed electronic accounting systems. So simple.
Street parking and many other transactions can be paid by mobile phone, with charges posted to your phone bill, and free Wi-Fi is practically ubiquitous everywhere in the country.
Government business has also gone digital, with paperless cabinet meetings and electronic voting so that citizens can access the government portal, peruse cabinet agendas and documents and see how their politicians are voting.
In Canada, the Senate Standing Committee on Transport and Communications (SSCTC) has recently released its Plan for a Digital Canada report (http://planforadigitalcanada.ca/index.php?lang=en).
The committee noted that over 20 countries now have comprehensive digital strategies, of which Estonia was highlighted as a model for Canada to follow.
In 1998, Estonia’s parliament passed the principles of Estonian information policy and immediately began implementing its famous “Tiger Leap” program.
Twelve years later, Canada still has no strategy.
What Canada has had is multiple rounds of interminable and exhausting consultations, and more consultations. First we had ministers Allan Rock and Jane Stewart’s 2002 cross-country marathon: the national summit on innovation and learning.
This consultation dragged its way all across the country, engaged hundreds of well-meaning people and amounted to nothing.
Next, in 2005, we had Industry Minister David Emerson’s technology commercialization task force to prepare a recommended roadmap and priorities for improving Canada’s innovation and technology commercialization performance. This also went nowhere. The bipartisan SSCTC has 12 current members – five Liberal and seven Conservative. One would think that such a committee structure would result in a report that was sufficiently balanced to suit a minority government environment and quickly be adopted. Finally, a rational digital strategy for Canada could be in sight.
Fat chance. Given how little credibility the Senate has these days within the government in power, and even within Parliament itself, don’t be surprised if Canadians are dragged through yet another tortuous cross-country consultation process to re-think what has been thought and re-thought so many times before on this topic.
And so Canada continuous to have no digital strategy, as our productivity continues to slide. Makes you want to scream.
