The Ministry of Digital Affairs is to be launched on Aug. 27, with Minister Without Portfolio Audrey Tang (唐鳳) serving as its first minister, Executive Yuan spokesman Lo Ping-cheng (羅秉成) said yesterday.
The new ministry is to promote interdisciplinary cooperation in digital services, complete and apply the “Data for Social Good” system and facilitate technology and data democratization.
National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University associate engineering professor Chiueh Her-ming (闕河鳴) and iPass Corp chairman Lee Huai-jen (李懷仁) are to serve as political deputy ministers.
Photo: Tsung Chang-chin, Taipei Times
Tang must relinquish her minister without portfolio duties before assuming the position, Lo said, adding that her successor would be announced later.
The new ministry is to consist of the Administration for Digital Industries; the Administration for Cyber Security; the National Institute of Cyber Security, which is to be established by the end of the year; and three foundations, including the Institute for Information Industry, the Telecom Technology Center and the Taiwan Network Information Center.
The ministry is to integrate the associated services of the National Communications Commission, the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications, the National Development Council and the Cabinet’s Department of Cyber Security.
Academics hope that the new ministry would help government and business build an “information security moat” against cyberattacks as tensions across the Taiwan Strait rise.
Chiang Ya-chi (江雅綺), director of the Taiwan Law and Technology Association and an associate professor at National Taiwan Ocean University’s College of Ocean Law and Policy, said that digital industries are hopeful that Tang can develop thorough strategies to guide them through digital transitions.
Taiwan should have laws similar to the EU’s Digital Markets Act and Digital Services Act, she said.
The government should set clear regulations on information security and personal information protection, as data economics is playing a greater role in business and trade, she said.
The ministry can help government agencies with digital transformation, and build a solid foundation for digital governance, Chiang said.
Such governance requires cooperation between various agencies, making communication between agencies a primary challenge for the new ministry, she added.
The Open Culture Foundation, the Taiwan Association for Human Rights, the Software Liberty Association Taiwan, the Coalition of Taiwan Civil Service Reform Drivers and Amnesty International Taiwan issued a statement last month calling on the new ministry to consider human rights while drafting its administrative plan.
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