Statement on the interim report of the working group on digital solutions in corona recovery

CSC has made a statement on the interim report of the (national) working group on the digital solutions for corona recovery, published on 3 June 2020. The statement offers views on the actions suggested in the report with a special emphasis on digitalisation of education, RDI and digital innovations as well as use of data and data pools.

CSC emphasises the need to prioritise the legislative reforms that are needed in order to solidify the digital advancements that have taken place due to the corona crisis.  Another priority area is European cooperation, including better use of EU funding for projects that support digitalisation.

When it comes to digitalisation of education, digital solutions present a number of opportunities not only for remote teaching and learning but also for developing a service path for continuous learning. Solutions must be found also for digital identification in order to facilitate remote assessment and entry processes for international students.

As to RDI and digital innovations, the statement highlights the opportunities that existing and upcoming infrastructures (e.g. LUMI supercomputer) can offer for improving the competitiveness of Finnish RDI actors. When it comes to use of data and data pools, the statement emphasises the need to improve access to publicly funded data as well as the importance of trustworthy and well-managed data pools for knowledge-based decision-making.

CSC wants to also remind that digitalisation is a horizontal phenomenon that requires a new way of working from the different administrative sectors in order to create a comprehensive overall view. Projects and their funding must therefore be more and more cross-sectoral in order to avoid silos that may hamper the advancement of digitalisation.

Full statement in Finnish (pdf)