'Innovation, optimisation key areas for IT investments in Asia Pacific'

This is highlight that IT investments by Asia/Pacific governments will be channelled into resource optimisation; innovation and internationalisation; and traceability and resilience in 2017. 
• Resource Optimisation would involved streamlining redundant processes and optimising IT resources through next-generation analytics (eg, embedded analytics, big data, cognitive intelligence, and artificial intelligence) for better performance and efficiency; 
• Innovation and Internationalisation would aim to spur domestic industry IT innovation and export growth; and
• Traceability and resilience would explore blockchain and digital asset initiatives for greater transparency and accountability; as well as intensifying drives to boost national sovereignty and cybersecurity resilience efforts.
Asia Pacific governments will eventually have to explore innovative sourcing techniques and justifications for third-platform technology pilots and investments. However, it is essential that the governments continue to ensure prudence in procurement practices for IT investments such as fairness-for-all goals, transparency and accountability drives, as well as value-for-money choices, the reports said.
Gerald Wang, head of Asia Pacific Government and Education, expects to see an increase in the level of regional socioeconomic and political volatility in the next three to four years due to global uncertainties such as Brexit, the European Union, the 2016 US presidential election results, and the end to the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement between countries in the Asia Pacific and the United States will bring about several trade implications to economies in the Asia Pacific excluding Japan (APeJ).
"APeJ government executives will most probably push for a more resilient national security and cybersecurity domestic ecosystem to protect national interests as well as put in place more protectionist approaches toward US-based suppliers as a reaction to protect their domestic industries. This could affect the uptake of ICT solutions and much-needed innovation, especially with digital transformation goals to assimilate cloud and next-generation analytics solutions in particular," Wang adds.
Wang sees a growing national evolutionary agenda as well as citizen-centric eServices transformations as key target goals of numerous APeJ governments in 2017. He adds, "The 2016 US presidential election results and the end to the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement between the APeJ and the US will pose short-to-mid-term challenges for APeJ city governments as their national governments need to figure out new trade, export and innovation-exchange opportunities as well as navigate tighter central/federal regulations on government IT procurement, national cybersecurity interests as well as a possible smaller pool of strategic sourcing options for smart city programmes."