The National Digital Program of the Government of Israel

Chapter 2 – Digital Israel Initiative Partners

Bank of IsraelThe Bureau’s main partner in carrying out the National Initiative is the Government ICT Authority. Alongside the Authority, the circle of key partners refers to the implementation teams responsible for work in the core areas in the various government ministries and in local government. The latter is a significant partner for implementing the Program in local government. The wider circle includes various entities in the public sector that are vital for the National Initiative’s progress and its realization, each in its field and responsibility areas. The next partner circle includes entities and groups that the Bureau acts to harness as partners for the various National Initiative projects. Thus, a suitable eco-system can be developed for the National Initiative through academia, research entities, the private sector, the third sector and NGOs. Furthermore, the public is a natural partner for the advancement of the National Initiative. As a direct continuation to the open government policy and to service improvement, it is critically important to involve the public in National Initiative decision-making processes, in designing the various measures and in providing feedback. Finally, cooperation with counterpart international entities will help the Bureau learn from the knowledge and experience of leading countries and accelerate the progress of the National Initiative. An example of such cooperation can be seen in Israel’s joining the forum of leading digital governments (D5), through which the government received assistance in formulating a secure and smart identification policy. 

Chapter 3 – Measuring the Initiative and the National Digital Index

Measurement will fundamentally improve the government’s knowledge regarding the status of the various issues addressed by the National Initiative. With measurement it is possible to identify at every point in time the State’s rate of progress towards realizing the vision of the Initiative and the strategic objectives of the National Program. Measurement will also help guide government policy measures to the most critical regions.

The Bureau in cooperation with the Government ICT Authority is currently examining the design of a National Digital Index. The index will reflect the status of the State of Israel in this area and will enable identification of gaps and examination of the effectiveness of government policy implemented. The index will also provide a broad and comprehensive picture of the state of digitization in the State of Israel.

To track the progress of the National Digital Program indices will be defined for the primary goals of the National Initiative. Ongoing tracking of the indices, and directing policy measures accordingly, will enable realization of the strategic objectives and assessment of the various initiatives carried out within the Program framework. As we see it, combined improvement on all the above indices will lead to the achievement of the strategic objectives, and as a result – to realization of the Program’s primary goals. Furthermore, improvement on the various indices included in the National Digital Index will enable the State of Israel to improve its ranking on various international indexes, and will support the design and formulation of optimal government policy for realizing the vision of the National Initiative. As noted, the various indices will be consolidated into a numeric index for measuring the progress of Israel in the digital area over time.

The National Digital Index is currently in the planning stages in cooperation with the Central Bureau of Statistics and additional entities from the public and private sectors. It should be noted that since digital measurement is continuously being refined, the measurement area will be reviewed throughout the National Digital Program implementation period, and should there be indexes that more accurately reflect the progress of the National Initiative, they will be integrated into the National Digital Index.