Page 389 - Special Topic Session (STS) - Volume 2

STS507 Vince G. et al.
 set the strategic direction for government’s management of data with the
development of a Data Strategy and Roadmap focused on unlocking the
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value of data for all New Zealanders
 lead the state sector’s response to new and emerging data issues, most
recently by fast-tracking work to strengthen transparency of, and
accountability for, government’s use of algorithms.
In September 2018, the government (through a cabinet mandate) agreed
to empower the GCDS to:
 set mandatory standards and guidelines for the collection, management
and use of data by government agencies; and
 direct agencies to adopt common data capabilities, such as data tools,
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linking infrastructure, or sharing platforms (subject to an opt-out process) .
These new powers are intended to establish the foundations necessary for
agencies to manage and share data so that it provides a useful base to inform
decisions, within existing privacy and security settings.
In NZ there are already pockets of significant progress in the way that data
is managed and used across government. However, the system as a whole has
not been designed and managed with all-of-government needs in mind. Often
agencies focus on supporting their own operations as effectively and
efficiently as possible. At the same time, increased use of sophisticated data
analytics to drive decision making (e.g. artificial intelligence and algorithms)
within government elevates the need for strong common data practices to
maintain trust and confidence, ensure privacy is protected, and to foster the
ethical use of data.

3. Explicit Mandate to Conduct a Review – Algorithmic Transparency
A good example of Stats NZ using its new role and its acknowledged
competencies in data system issues was undertaking a review of the use of
algorithms in programme delivery.
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How did this happen?
Concern about data use led the New Zealand Government to want to ‘take
stock’ of the use of algorithms by government agencies. The Minister for
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Government Digital Services and the Minister of Statistics commissioned an

1 Data Strategy and Roadmap https://www.data.govt.nz/about/data-strategy-and-roadmap-setting-
the-direction-for-new-zealands-data/
2 Cabinet paper – Strengthening Data Leadership https://www.stats.govt.nz/corporate/cabinet-paper-
strengthening-data-leadership-across-government-to-enable-more-effective-public-services
3 Government Algorithm Transparency https://www.data.govt.nz/use-data/analyse-
data/government-algorithm-transparency/
4 Panel Presentation by the Privacy Commissioner, John Edwards, to the Data Analytics Forum on Ethics and
Algorithmic Transparency on 18 July 2018 in Wellington https://www.privacy.org.nz/assets/Files/Speeches-
presentations/2018-07-18-Data-Analytics-Forum-Panel-presentation.pdf
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