Press release: UK and New Zealand sign ICT agreement

7th April, 2006. Jisc and New Zealand’s Ministry of Education (on behalf of New Zealand’s Education Sector ICT Standing Committee and Ministry of Research, Science and Technology) have signed a formal partnership agreement which will see close cooperation between the two organisations in the e-Framework initiative and the exploration of other potential areas for collaboration.

With international cooperation becoming central to the development and deployment of IT standards and systems, the agreement will provide a significant boost to the e-Framework initiative which has already attracted considerable international interest.

The initiative, an ambitious and far-reaching programme, undertaken up to now by Jisc and Australia’s Department for Education Science and Training (DEST) with growing international support, is exploring more flexible approaches to the technical infrastructures for e-learning, e-research and e-administration. The development of such a service-oriented technical framework, based on open standards, will, it is argued, maximise the flexibility and cost-effectiveness of IT systems.

While the principal focus of the agreement between Jisc and New Zealand’s Ministry of Education is the e-Framework initiative, other areas in which the two organisations might explore joint activities or share experiences include e-learning, repositories, network, e-Science, e-administration and middleware development. The agreement follows the exchange of visitors between the two countries with two more delegations from New Zealand arriving in the UK in the coming month.

Jisc’s Head of Development Sarah Porter said:

'It has been fascinating to see how much similarity there is between our two countries, particularly in the current major government strategies for the adoption of technology to support education. Both countries share many interests and issues and the UK envies the speed at which New Zealand can move to adopt new technologies; there is a lot to learn and share from both sides. We look forward very much to fruitful collaboration in the future.'

Howard Fancy, Secretary of Education for New Zealand, said:

'We are proud to be contributing our locally developed expertise to an international body such as Jisc. This relationship is going to bring us a lot of benefits as by working with international standards, we all stand to benefit from innovations as we are creating building blocks we can all use.'

For further information

e-Framework 
Ministry of Education 
contact Philip Pothen (Jisc) or New Zealand Ministry of Education - Education Sector ICT at ICT.sector@minedu.govt.nz

 

Notes for editors

1. Jisc – the Joint Information Systems Committee – is a joint committee of the UK further and higher education funding bodies and is responsible for supporting the innovative use of information and communication technology (ICT) to support learning, teaching, and research.  It is best known for providing the JANET network, a range of support, content and advisory services, and a portfolio of high-quality resources.  Find out more about Jisc, its services and programmes or contact Philip Pothen.
2. New Zealand’s Education Sector Agencies, under the auspices of the New Zealand Education Sector ICT Standing Committee have worked together to develop the New Zealand ICT Strategic Framework for Education to provide the mechanism to guide and co-ordinate the sector’s ICT investment towards the government’s vision of improved education outcomes. With a  vision to “improve learner achievement in an innovative education sector, fully connected and supported by the smart use of ICT”, the Framework is aligned with and supports, the New Zealand Government’s e-Government and National Digital Strategies, and provides the foundation for effective e-learning practices to be integrated into New Zealand educational practices. The ICT Standing Committee comprises the chief executives of Career Services Rapuara, Education Review Office, New Zealand Qualifications Authority, New Zealand Teachers Council, Tertiary Education Commission and National Library of New Zealand, with the Secretary for Education as Chair. See information about the NZMoE or enquiries can be made to ICT.sector@minedu.govt.nz.