Australian Senator Stephen Conroy calls for public comments on Digital Economy initiatives | WPN World People News

Australian Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy, today called for public comments on draft program guidelines for the Digital Hubs and Digital Enterprise programs.

Senator Conroy said the draft guidelines provide information on the purpose and desired outcomes of the programs, as well as information about eligibility requirements and the application process.

“The guidelines will shape the way we deliver the Digital Hubs and Digital Enterprise programs,” Senator Conroy said.

“It is important that Australians have the opportunity to comment on these draft guidelines so we can ensure these programs meet the needs of the community.”

The Digital Hubs and Digital Enterprise programs support the National Digital Economy Strategy’s goal that Australia will be among the world’s leading digital economies by 2020.

The Digital Hubs program, part of the $23.8 million Digital Communities initiative, provides training and support to residents in local communities to gain the skills needed to maximise the benefits of the NBN.

The Digital Enterprise program provides $12.4 million to deliver training to assist small-to-medium enterprises and not-for-profit organisations better understand how they can take advantage of the NBN and online opportunities more generally.

Digital Hubs and Digital Enterprise activities will be delivered to the 40 communities that first benefit from the NBN.

After the guidelines are finalised, an initial call for applications to deliver activities for both programs is planned for later this year targeting the five mainland NBN first release sites and 3 stage one communities in Tasmania. Subsequent funding rounds will be held in line with the NBN roll out. Eligibility criteria are provided in the draft guidelines.