Talking with research, businesses and other organisations
Recently, we have been talking to various people about the digital society. We discovered that we need to improve the way we work together in order to reach more people. For example, by reaching out to people in places they visit every day. This could be the supermarket or the school playground. Several companies have told us that they want to help. For example, by making a space available, by sharing knowledge or by making money available.
We are getting new ideas from organisations abroad
Organisations abroad are also working at going digital. Just like us, they want more people to be able to use their computers and smartphones. We get ideas from them for new solutions in the Netherlands. One example is ‘The Good Things Foundation’ in the United Kingdom. Here, organisations, public authorities and companies work together to help people who have difficulty with reading, writing and going digital. They do this by offering courses in different places and by looking closely at the effects of the different working methods.
Alliantie digivaardig Nederland
The ‘alliantie digivaardig Nederland’ started last summer. This is a cooperative agreement involving government, social organisations and businesses. We all share our knowledge and experiences. We also look at what works and what doesn’t. We look at internet courses, and courses in community centres or libraries, for example. Together we make plans to improve the range of courses on offer. We do this by having both old and new parties consider the existing range. New parties can be, for example, start-ups. Right now, the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations is looking at which plans could start as early as 2019.
We are cooperating more closely with companies
Over the coming years, we want to involve more organisations in the alliance. We can then offer a more personalised and varied range. Libraries and social organisations are already running courses, but businesses can also can help. Together with all parties, we can reach even more people.