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Australian Report On Progress Towards the Paperless Trading GoalsIn APEC¡¦s Blueprint for Action on Electronic Commerce
to be accessible at www.tradegate.org.au ) is attempting to overcome the longstanding problem of using the UN/EDIFACT payment messages to complete the loop of automatic business transactions using EDI.
The project envisages using the Tradegate ECA Internet web-form bureau service, which will allow users of non-EDI electronic commerce facilities to use the system being developed through the project.
The benefits of the project should accrue to most of the players that have to make payments associated with the carriage of international freight
3.Priorities and Objectives
Please provide details of your major priorities and objectives in encouraging paperless trading and any planned enhancements of current programs.
In 1997, Prime Minister John Howard committed the Australian Government, through his Investing for Growth Statement
(http://www.pm.gov.au/media/pressrel/1997/december/industry.htm )
to have all appropriate Government services online by 2001. Australia is quickly approaching this target and launched its overarching Government Online Strategy on 6 April 2000
(http://www.govonline.gov.au/projects/strategy/GovOnlineStrategy.htm ).
Australia launched its Commonwealth E-Procurement Strategy on 3 April 2000. It sets two goals:
• The Commonwealth Government will pay all suppliers electronically by the end of 2000.
• All simple procurement suppliers who wish to deal with the Commonwealth electronically, using open standards, will be able to do so by the end of 2001.
Australia intends to transact 90% of our simple procurement transactions electronically by the end of 2001.
Key elements of the Government's approach to e-commerce and paperless trading are:
• Facilitating industry and consumer take-up
• Articulating the issues
• Getting the legal and regulatory framework right
• Leading by example through Government services online ¡V All appropriate government services are to be delivered online by 2001
• Ensuring close collaboration between Federal and State agencies and industry.
Legal environment
The Government's general principles in relation to the development of the legal and regulatory environment are that the environment should:
• encourage innovation and growth;
• be technology neutral, ie not favour one form of technology or IT business approach over another;
• provide for functional equivalence, ie online transactions will be treated similarly to offline transactions;
• provide at least the same level of protection for consumers engaged in electronic commerce as is provided for other forms of commerce;
• be nationally consistent across States and Territories; and
• be consistent with widely agreed international positions.
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Administrative environment
The Australian Government considers authentication and open standards as key priorities in facilitating paperless trading.
NEAC
Reflecting the importance of authentication to the progress of e-commerce, the Government has established the National Electronic Authentication Council (NEAC). The Council:
• provides a national focal point on authentication matters including, where appropriate, co-ordination of authentication-related activities at a national and international level; provide advice to Government on authentication and related matters and monitor market developments in authentication;
• oversees the development by industry bodies and Standards Australia of a framework of technical standards and codes of business practice on authentication matters (including, as appropriate, promoting future interoperability [next page]