- Award presented to the Ministry of Finance for its efforts to drive digitization and implement innovative technologies to enhance citizen services
- In line with these initiatives, the Ministry has adopted Master Licensing Agreement 2.0 (MLA 2.0) that enhances public services delivery and provides role-based training for civil servants
Kuala Lumpur, 6 October 2016 – The Ministry of Finance (MoF) has been recognized for its sustained and outstanding efforts in furthering the digitization agenda for the nation, and has received the coveted Innovation Excellence Award 2016 from Microsoft Malaysia for implementing innovative technologies to enhance public service delivery and provide role based training for civil servants.
The award was presented to YBhg Tan Sri Dr. Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah, Secretary General of Treasury, Ministry of Finance by Toni Townes-Whitley, Corporate Vice-President, Worldwide Public Sector, Microsoft Corp during the Government Digital Transformation: Innovative Government 4.0 event today.
Upon acceptance of the award, YBhg Tan Sri Dr. Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah said, “A thriving, digital economy has the ability to contribute some 20 percent to the Gross Domestic Product of Malaysia by 2020 – hence the reason why it would be the focus of the 2017 Budget. Our partnership with Microsoft plays a pivotal role in helping government and businesses align itself to the country’s strategic ICT thrust. We look forward to carrying on this journey with Microsoft leveraging their technologies and expertise to further the digital transformation goals of the country.”
The Ministry was also lauded for the adoption of the Master Licensing Agreement 2.0 (MLA 2.0) that was undertaken in 2015. MLA 2.0 provides a platform of technological transformation for government agencies and expanded services, which comprise of licensing and technical support, software asset management, product awareness and technology updates, technical workshops and usage guidelines. The MLA was first initiated in 2008 and enables government agencies to harness a complete suite of Microsoft licenses, enhancing delivery of systems and services.
Presenting the award, Toni Townes-Whitley reiterated the company’s commitment to transform the public sector. “Our mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more, and we are fully committed to helping public sector agencies transform digitally. In Malaysia, we have worked hard over the past 25 years to become a trusted advisor to the government, and have provided over RM17 million in grants and skills training. We are committed to building on this partnership anchored on driving economic growth, innovation and societal impact,” she said.
“We realize that leaders across the public sector must pair technology-enabled programs with policies that ensure benefits of this digital economy are equitably shared across everyone, and we recognize the Finance Ministry’s exemplary efforts in leveraging technology that improves the lives of citizens and transforms the nation.”
The current award is the second recognition for the Malaysian government by Microsoft Malaysia. The first, titled the eGovernment Excellence Award, was presented in 2014 to the Government of Malaysia for enabling transformation in civil service.
The award is in line with Microsoft’s efforts to highlight digital transformation amongst customers who have adopted cloud solutions. This is manifested in the company’s recently published book, A Cloud for Global Good, which captures how the cloud drives the transformation of businesses and industries across Europe and around the world.
“For governments to move to the cloud, there is a need to feel confident that their data and services are secure, private and delivered reliably. We need to work with companies like Microsoft to commit to four priorities – security, data privacy, compliance and transparency – that impact trust in the cloud,” concluded YBhg Tan Sri Dr. Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah.