February 16th, 2024

In this episode of “Let’s Think Digital”, hosted by Ryan Androsoff, Senator Deacon discusses the importance of leadership in digital transformation and the need for modernizing government institutions.

Link to podcast here.

September 28th, 2023

Canada is falling behind other countries in the race to embrace digital transformation and in providing convenient, digital government services to citizens. In this speech on his motion 107, Senator Deacon urges the Government of Canada to prioritize end-to-end digitization of convenient and cost-efficient government services that transforms the public service delivery experience for Canadians. Click here to see the full speech.

September 15th, 2023

In this CBC article, Senator Deacon offers his insights on the key findings of the PBO’s Report on the Government’s Digital Service Transformation. Click here to read more.

September 15th, 2023

In response to a request made by Senator Colin Deacon, following the tabling of his motion no 107, the PBO published a report which details findings on the federal government’s status regarding digital services.

Link to Report: EN / FR

Link to Senator Deacon’s Statement: EN / FR

April 12th, 2023

Senator Colin Deacon met with Aran Hamilton and Slava Banik, the Head of the eServices Development at the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, to discuss the benefits of providing mobile access to personal documents.

Since Russia’s full-scale invasion, Diia has been used as a critical platform supporting displaced Ukrainians and providing services to those impacted by the war. Built-in partnership with the U.S., Diia is now poised to be shared with countries around the world—an offer that is available to Canada as well.

Click here to watch the full video.

Click here to view the accompanying presentation.

March 29th, 2023

Senator Deacon gave a notice that the Senate called on the Government of Canada to replace its outdated program delivery and information technology systems by urgently accelerating the implementation of user-friendly, digital solutions that transform the public service delivery experience of Canadians, and ultimately reduce the cost of program delivery.

Click here to read more.

March 17th, 2023

8 in 10 Canadians think navigating government services would be simpler with more digital tools. It is crucial that governments embrace digital technologies to improve service delivery, increase efficiencies and enhance transparency. Around the world, it has been demonstrated that adopting a customer-centric approach to digital public services will reduce costs and enhance citizen engagement. By embracing this opportunity, the Canadian Government can better serve Canadians and stay competitive in the digital age.

Click here to read the report.

October 20th, 2022

Digital transformation puts the individual at the centre. And will ensure that people's safety and fundamental rights are protected. In this statement, Senator Deacon raises issues concerning initiatives on digital regulations and cooperation with international partners.

Click here to read more.

September 16th, 2022

What can Canada learn from Ukraine? The anatomy of Ukraine's digitization success story was presented at a special meeting of the CIO Strategy Council, a group of Canada’s leading CIOs and industry leaders. This piece by Jim Love summarized the main point of the remarkable presentation by Mstyslav Banik, Director of eServices Development Directorate at the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine.

For more information, click here.

September 14th, 2022

Ukraine has managed to implement an astonishingly comprehensive set of digital government services, with 70 key public services available, half the adult population participating, and a goal of digitizing all government services by 2024 – despite the fact that the country is fighting for its very existence in a war with Russia. This remarkable achievement was presented to a special meeting of the CIO Strategy Council, a group of Canada’s leading CIOs and industry leaders.

Senator Colin Deacon opened this exclusive event, introducing Mstyslav Banik, Director of eServices Development Directorate at the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine. Mr. Banik appeared via a Zoom link from Ukraine.

The Ukrainian digital government experiment has been so successful that even Estonia – the world’s pioneer in terms of digital government – has looked to adopt the Ukrainian model for its digital services.

Please click here to learn more.

September 12th, 2022

Diia is an ecosystem which unites most of the services provided by the Government of Ukraine in one place, made easily accessible online via the Diia Mobile Application (Diia App) and Web Portal. The Diia ecosystem also includes theme blocks on education (Diia Education), small and medium-sized business support (Diia Business), administrative services (Diia website and Diia application), as well as a unique project on the legal framework for the IT industry (Diia City).

Launched in December 2019, Diia App became the most downloaded app in Ukraine by June 2022, according to data from Similarweb's Digital Ranking. With 18 million total users (one in every 3 Ukrainians), the Diia App is also the most frequently used app, according to Ukraine's Ministry of Digital Transformation.

One of the reasons for the Diia App's popularity is its focus on user experience. In September 2022, the Diia App simplified 25 public services and digitized 16 documents. The Ministry of Digital Transformation aims to make 100% of all public services available online by 2024.

Click here to read the full report.