PNG Government Overhauls Digital Services in Major New Partnership

The PNG government has centralised its entire digital infrastructure, signing a major agreement with state-owned enterprise PNG Dataco to streamline and secure all public sector data and communications.

The Master Service Agreement, signed this morning by the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and witnessed by Minister for ICT, Timothy Masiu, designates PNG Dataco as the official implementation partner for the government’s ambitious digital transformation agenda.

Under the agreement, all government websites and online services will be hosted on a single platform, “GovCloud”. Every public employee will be issued an official .gov.pg email address with a standardised Microsoft 365 account.

The move is a key step in implementing the Digital Government Act 2022, which mandates the consolidation of government digital services to improve security and efficiency.
In a significant measure to safeguard public information, all government bodies will now be required to back up their electronic data to a central repository managed by PNG Dataco. This is intended to create redundancy and prevent data loss.

All inter-agency communication will also be routed through a new secure Government Private Network, a measure designed to enhance the security and standardisation of government connectivity nationwide.

Minister Masiu said the partnership is a critical milestone in the delivery of the Digital Government Plan 2023–2027. The plan aims to ensure all government agencies operate within a secure, connected, and uniform digital ecosystem, moving away from the previously fragmented and ad-hoc approach to ICT across the public service. This new arrangement with PNG Dataco is expected to provide the technical backbone for this transformation.