Fading war veterans prompt ICT rethink

The DVA said this week a revised ICT plan would have to help deliver a business strategy which accommodates a cut in funding from the government stemming from the decline in numbers of veterans. While DVA had gained responsibility for management of military rehabilitation and compensation for serving Australian Defence Force members, this would not compensate for the expected decline in the number of veterans over the next five to 10 years as the surviving World War Two population thinned out, the department said.

In a request for tender issued this week which outlines the scope of the plan, the DVA noted that ICT would be "a key enabler in introducing more cost-efficient and cost-effective ways of conducting business and delivering services".

Among the requirements for ICT are to support the DVA's new business architecture "through a corresponding systems architecture". The DVA is also planning to modernise ICT systems and architecture and introduce an integrated application framework to bring DVA service delivery applications together in a consolidated delivery platform.

The request for tender itself encompasses account management services, transition services and infrastructure services to support provision of mainframe, midrange, desktop, file and print, shared storage, help-desk and other cross-platform services.

The tender also includes provision of services in communications, database management and ICT security to complement existing services provided by DVA and other suppliers.

DVA said it was looking for a single vendor partner to manage an initial four-year contract to take effect after its arrangement with IBM Global Services expires on 9 April 2007. DVA entered its first arrangement with GS -- then known as Integrated Systems Solutions Corp (ISSC) -- on 14 February 1997 and extended the deal twice. The DVA may decide to extend the deal for two further period of two years each.