Ireland needs to be equipped to embrace a new digital culture

Digital Business Ireland, the representative body for online businesses has today called for the party leaders of the next government to prioritise the provision of a senior cabinet post for digital affairs. Digital Business Ireland contends that Ireland needs to be fully equipped to embrace a new digital culture in order to position itself in a new world order.

Digital Business Ireland (DBI) is the voice of the Irish digital commerce sector. Set up in 2019, DBI continues to grow its membership footprint across a wide range of digital businesses to include retail, hospitality, technology, professional services, travel, transport, education, leisure, agri-business and property.

Chief Executive of DBI, Lorraine Higgins today said “Like most countries, Ireland has embraced digital in order to keep functioning during the shutdown brought about by the Coronavirus. The pandemic has undoubtedly accelerated Ireland’s digital development and we must be ready, as a country, to embrace the possibilities it now presents”.

“There is important work to be done to bridge the digital divide in communities and drive the digital literacy agenda because the future of business, education, health, human resources and education will depend on a strategy that will ultimately deliver meaningful results for our country.

“Given the increased dependency on technology and online it is clear that we desperately need a department to house all matters relating to it so there is a streamlined approach and that the burden isn’t spread across a range of departments. Ireland can no longer afford to have a piecemeal approach to issues affecting the digital world as this will have long standing ramifications for the future of this country and our ability to attract investment”.