Australia announces national blockchain roadmap: plans to increase investment to promote

According to a press release jointly issued by the two Australian ministries on March 18, Australia has announced a national blockchain strategy and roadmap, in which the federal government will provide a further AU$100,000 (approximately US$71,200) in funding.

Industry, Science and Technology Minister Karen Andrews and Trade, Tourism and Investment Minister Simon Birmingham jointly stated that the new policy roadmap aims to promote Australia to become a global leader in the fledgling blockchain industry.

The roadmap will include the development of blockchain "regulation, skills and capacity building, innovation, investment, and international competitiveness and cooperation."

According to a media release, previous blockchain investments have come from Australia’s Liberal Government under Prime Minister Scott Morrison, including an investment of AUD 700,000 (approximately USD 500,000) in the country’s Digital Transformation Agency in 2018-2019 to explore the advantages of blockchain for government payments; and to Standards Australia (Standards). Australia) to promote the development of standardized international blockchain standards.

The new funding will be specifically allocated to the Department of Industry, Science and Technology to enable it to sponsor Australian companies to attend the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) blockchain conference in New York later this year. Minister Andrews outlined:

“We will work closely with blockchain and technology experts from industry and academia, as well as the Data61 unit of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO), to implement the findings in our upcoming blockchain future scenarios report. ”

As Cointelegraph previously reported, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization is an Australian government corporate entity responsible for conducting scientific research to promote local industry. The company’s digital innovation center, Data61, has led several large-scale blockchain projects to date.

In a media release, Minister Birmingham emphasized that government support for blockchain will help ensure that "Australia and its technology companies maintain a leading position in the world's fastest-growing technology industry." ”

Over the past year, Australia has taken some major initiatives to integrate blockchain into the government and financial sectors.

In July 2018, IBM signed a five-year A$1 billion (US$740 million) agreement with the Australian government to use blockchain and other new technologies to improve data security and automate processes across federal departments.

(Source: Babbitt)