Assembly plan aims to make Wales a digital nation by 2020

The Welsh Assembly Government has outlined plans detailing how it is going to achieve a truly digital nation by 2020.

A report entitled ‘Delivering a Digital Wales' outlines five areas it hopes to target: digital inclusion, skills, competitiveness, public services transformation and digital infrastructure.

The Welsh government intends to reduce the levels of digital exclusion among adults from 34 per cent (785,000 people) in 2010, to 30 per cent (692,000) by 2012, and to 25 per cent (577,000) by 2015.

It intends to achieve this by building private sector alliances to support the digital inclusion agenda, conducting research to better understand the issues behind digital exclusion, and ensuring an alignment of policy and practice between Job Centre Plus, public libraries and other partners.

Free access to 2,600 computers with internet access in 320 public libraries will also be provided, as will free ICT taster sessions.

"Our ambition is for a digitally inclusive, sustainable, prosperous society, where all citizens are empowered to be able to take advantage of digital technologies to enhance their quality of life," reads the report.

Digital skills are also central to the plans, with the government aiming for all pupils aged between 14 and 16 to gain ICT skills that are formally accredited. This will be achieved by developing a national standard for schools.

Plans to increase the number of Welsh ICT businesses undertaking R&D and innovation by 10 per cent have also been put forward.

A 10 per cent increase in the number of Welsh ICT companies involved in trading internationally is also anticipated.

"Our ambition is to drive economic growth and support a thriving and competitive digital economy in Wales. In this environment businesses work innovatively to utilise digital technologies and strengthen their local and global competitiveness," says the report.

The Welsh government hopes to achieve increased competition by promoting the region as an investment location at international events, establishing an ICT sector panel consisting of strategic experts in the private sector, and developing a comprehensive database of companies to better understand the IT industry.

The report also says people in Wales should "have better, more convenient and easier access to relevant services through multiple digital channels".

Targets to achieve this include enabling 50 per cent of people to use digital public services by 2015, and 80 per cent of businesses by 2015.

The report also reiterates the Assembly's desire to get all businesses in Wales connected to next generation broadband by 2016, and all households by 2020.