A. Mandatory requirements

Public Service departments

1. The following aspects of e-government are mandatory for all Public Service departments:

• E-government Strategy - on 2 April 2001, Cabinet:

  • invited the Minister of State Services to write to all chief executives of Public Service departments requiring their participation in the strategy, and the explicitinclusion of e-government into their business planning from the year 2001/02 onwards.

[CAB Min (01) 10/12 refers]

Also, see: Letter from Minister of State Services to Public Service chief executives dated 24 April 2001 & State Services Commissioner's Chief Executive circular 2001/14 - issued with revised e-government strategy in December 2001.

• Authentication - Cabinet has directed public service departments to:

  • adopt the policy framework for electronic authentication; and
  • liaise with the E-government Unit of the State Services Commission on any potential or existing developments that involve any aspect of electronic authentication.

[CAB Min (02) 12/2A refers]

• Funding processes for E-Government Initiatives - Cabinet has agreed that:

  • for all individual or multi-agency e-government initiatives that are funded from baselines, new initiative funding, or any other funding source, agencies must be able to demonstrate that:
    • in addition to normal consultation requirements, consultation with SSC over alignment of any proposed e-government initiatives with the e-government strategy has occurred.

[CAB Min (02) 8/2A refers]

Public Service and non-Public Service departments

2. Cabinet has made the following mandatory for all Public Service departments, the New Zealand Police, the New Zealand Defence Force, the Parliamentary Counsel Office, the Parliamentary Service, the Office of the Clerk, the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service, and the Government Communications Security Bureau:

• Use of New Zealand Government Locator Service Metadata Standard - Cabinet has directed that these agencies:

  • become NZGLS compliant (as specified in paragraph A.11.1 of the NZGLS Metadata Standard), and make NZGLS metadata records available to the NZGLS System, so as to ensure that their services and relevant information resources (both online and offline) can be discovered by the Portal search engine's metadata searching capability. This requires that:
    • from 30 June 2002 onwards departments will each have an ongoing responsibility to ensure they are NZGLS compliant, and will be expected to create and make available sufficient NZGLS compliant metadata (minimum set plus discretionary records) to ensure that all their services and/or relevant data and information resources are easily discoverable through the Portal at all times.

[CAB Min (01) 38/2B and CO (02) 3 refer]

• New Zealand e-Government Interoperability Framework - Cabinet has directed that agencies adopt the e-GIF on the following basis:

Application of e-GIF

• Current information systems, software applications, or electronic data/information resources do not need to immediately comply with the NZ e-GIF.
• Any new information system, software application, or electronic data/information resource (or current instances of these being redeveloped or replaced); or systems for interfacing with the same; must comply with the e-GIF except in instances where:

• it is certain that interoperability will never be a requirement; or
• the current version of the e-GIF does not, and could not, include policies, standards or guidelines concerning the technologies the agency needs (not wants) to employ; or
• an alternative approach to achieving interoperability (e.g. EDI) is justified.

Exemptions from e-GIF

• Where an agency believes there are grounds for exemption from the e-GIF, it must:

• conclusively demonstrate, to the satisfaction of the e-GIF Steward, where the current version of the e-GIF cannot meet requirements, or why an alternative approach to achieving interoperability is justified; and
• where sensible, contribute to the updating of the e-GIF.
• Where an exemption is approved it will only apply to a specific information system, software application, data/information resource or business process; not the entirety of an agency's information and technology environment and/or business processes.

Special provisions

• Specialist systems employed by, or sponsored by, the security and intelligence agencies are automatically exempted where compliance with the E-GIF is inappropriate.

(Again, these requirements apply to the Parliamentary Service and the Office of the Clerk.)

[CAB Min (02) 18/2C refers]. See also CO (02) 12 - New Zealand e-Government Interoperability Framework (NZ e-GIF): adoption by government agencies.

• Information security: agencies are required to implement Security in the Government Sector (SIGS) promulgated by DPMC on 1 July 2002 (see: www.security.govt.nz). This includes a set of minimum internet security standards, and also references S.E.E. Mail.

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