Digital 21

Background – About Digital 21

Digital 21 is a campaign to highlight the imperative of creating an action programme to secure the digital infrastructure and services upon which the success of our economy depends.

In the last century, Ireland succeeded in transforming its economy and a key component then was the National Development Plan. Now we are again faced with a challenge to compete in the Digital Economy and we need to have a National Digital Development Plan.

The country needs to change its mindset from tarmac to digital, from property to innovation. The digital networks of this century are as vital to economic success as the roads networks were to the last. We had Transport 21 now we now need Digital 21.

The aim of the campaign is to work in a spirit of partnership with industry, Government, business, media and all stakeholders to add impetus to the common effort that will be needed to succeed in transforming Ireland into a world-leading economy.

The website for Digital 21 provides a forum for all those interested in accelerating the development of Ireland’s Digital Economy.

The Campaign Objective

The Creation of a National Digital Development Plan

The Digital Economy underpins our whole economy and its competitiveness. Investment in digital infrastructure and services must take precedence over almost everything else. It is the bedrock on which all other sectors depend; it is the key to our recovery and future economic success.

If we prioritise digital, we will create the growth to fund other development. If we fail to make this a national imperative then all other future revenue will be adversely affected.

So the fundamental challenge is how to move the Smart Economy plan onto a development footing and how to get stakeholder and society buy-in for the plan and to send a positive message out to the global players in the eco-knowledge economy.

Right now, our economic future depends on the Digital Economy. If we are to move from plans to action then we need a new National Digital Development Plan – it is time to reset the NDP so it delivers the infrastructure today’s Ireland needs. We need digital roads more than we need tarmacadam. We need Digital 21 to replace Transport 21.

This will require a major effort by Government and a fundamental rethink of what constitutes infrastructure. It will involve all stakeholders buying into the shift from tarmac roads to digital roads. It will guarantee a whole-of-Government approach because the capital expenditure and development budget will prioritise the infrastructure of the knowledge economy.

If we are to have a Smart Economy we need a smart National Digital Development Plan that builds the digital infrastructure without which the Smart Economy cannot exist. A digital development plan will make this a reality, and send a clear signal to all stakeholders that the knowledge economy is actually going to happen.

This is not a matter of either/or. We will still need physical infrastructure, but we must prioritise our digital infrastructure if we are to generate the recovery and jobs to pay for that physical infrastructure. Therefore the National Digital Development Plan must be a central part of any future NDP.

The creation of this National Digital Development Plan will be a clear statement of intent from Government and will send out a positive message to international markets that Ireland is the place to invest in if you are in the digital and green-economy space – exactly the type of investment we are looking to attract. This will give us a strong competitive advantage over our international competitors whose digital development action plans are well advanced. It will provide existing multinationals with the certainty they need to secure the investment they are pitching for.

Our existing critical mass of knowledge-based industries, combined with our industry and Government partnership model, means we are in a unique position to become a world leader in the digitally-powered, knowledge-based economy of the future.

The creation of a National Digital Development Plan 2010–2021 will send a message to the world of Ireland’s digital credentials, and offer wider society a clear vision of a strong future for them and for future generations. It will send a strong message to our fellow Europeans that Ireland is ready to lead a strong Digital Europe into the future.

Our future prosperity and the well-being of our society depends on it.

The National Digital Development Plan – Key Actions:

What is required is a National Digital Development Plan that has priority within the Government capital-investment programme, and costed development programmes with time lines and delivery dates.

• Co-ordinate national investment and industry investment in augmented DSL and alternative wireless technologies, offering a basic standard of connectivity by 2012 with a progressive target for 2021
• Access: ensure a key minimal standard of broadband connectivity for every citizen, home and business in Ireland
• Set a target, budget and time line for 100pc of Irish schools – primary and post-primary – to be equipped with 100Mbps broadband by 2012
• Ensure that a standard of connectivity and equipment is achieved across all primary and post-primary schools by 2012 and consistently upgraded, and that every teacher receives adequate ICT training
• Reset the syllabus to prepare students for the realities of the 21st-century workplace. Ensure that maths and science standards at Junior and Leaving Cert level are fit for purpose. Introduce foreign languages into the primary-level syllabus. Create a syllabus that includes entrepreneurship in all second-level business courses
• Develop a national “education cloud” supported by a standard nationwide network with audio and video technologies supporting a unified syllabus
• Provide high-potential start-ups with easy-to-access early stage finance and overseas market intelligence. Provide support for industry groups that are supporting these start-ups
• Create a state-funded “Irish cloud university” focusing on innovation and sustainability to connect academics, students, industry and the Irish diaspora, incorporating existing programmes and education infrastructure
• Facilitate the creation of programmes to support the development and commercialisation of low-carbon technologies, products and services
• Continue and augment investment in science, research and development.

We will collaborate with all stakeholders to identify key areas which should form part of the NDDP. We will submit these recommendations to government in time for the 2010 Budget.