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Fifth Meeting of the Digital Agency Information Systems Acquisition Reform Study Panel

Last Updated:

Outline

  • Date and Time: Monday, November 7, 2022 from 13:00 to 14:30
  • Place: Digital Agency Common medium meeting room
  • Agenda:
    • 1. Opening
    • 2. Proceedings
      • 1. Positioning and Approach of the Fifth Meeting
      • 2. Direction of measures
      • 3. Free Discussion
    • 3) Closing

Data

Relevant policy

Summary of the proceedings

Date and time

  • Monday, November 7, 2022 from 13:00 to 14:30

Place

  • Digital Agency Common Medium Meeting Room

Attending committee member

Member Kajikawa, Member Arikawa, Member Kawasawa, Member Kimura, Member Sakashita, Member Sumiya

Summary of the proceedings

The Secretariat explained the direction of the measures in the first half and the second half, and after free discussion on each of them, supplementary comments and additional opinions were presented at the end. The main opinions from each committee member are as follows.

"Policy Direction (1) Improvement of Agile and Flexible Procurement Procedures"

  • On page 10 of the material, requirements are written, but it is necessary to judge what is sufficient in the field, and it is necessary to prepare materials with sufficient conditions.
  • With reference to page 10 of the attached document, I believe that the scheme of the Japanese version of the Framework Agreement is effective in improving the efficiency of procurement and shortening the procurement time.
  • The improvement of procurement procedures is not unique to information systems, but I think that agile development raises issues that are unique to information systems, so I would like you to make an appeal so that sufficient awareness can be gained. The most important things in agile development are how to determine the scope of implementation, and how to thoroughly verify the scope of implementation and provide feedback. If the definition of agile development and the grounds for its need are clarified, the purpose will be highlighted, and what kind of content will be the purpose of the contract will become clear. This will lead to accurate contract changes in the course of executing the contract. Therefore, I believe that ensuring fairness and clarity in selecting a vendor at the entrance will also be established. In addition, I believe that the items required in the timing of acceptance inspection and accounting laws and regulations will also be established.
  • I am in favor of studying the scheme of the framework method and introducing it at an early date, but I understand that medium-term measures will be effective if independent administrative agencies, local governments, national universities, and school educational institutions widely participate in this framework.
  • Regarding the promotion of smooth contracts for cloud services, I believe that the phrase "provide a guide to consider the use of a multi-year contract in consideration of the business" is a part of contracts for cloud services other than the Government Cloud. In order to clarify the relationship with the Government Cloud, it would be better to clarify that the phrase refers to services that are not covered by the Government Cloud.
  • In the document, agile development and cloud services are discussed together, but the issue of contracts is different. Cloud services are contracts to receive licenses, and agile development is a story where the problem of the responsibility decomposition point comes out. I would like you to proceed with the creation of the contract and the creation of the specifications after categorizing both properly.

"Direction of measures (2) Improvement of capability of ordering party in system procurement"

  • Once you've created a template, you have to implement it in the field. Think carefully about how you do it.
  • The study group covers a wide range of issues, but a particularly important point is the improvement of the capability of ordering parties. Materials on page 40 and others describe where to start implementing medium-term measures, and they also describe holding seminars aimed at learning organizations about minimum system procurements, which I think is very important. I believe these important initiatives will start in Digital Agency, but I would be grateful if you could also consider at the same time when to spread them to all ministries and agencies and at what speed they should be implemented. In particular, I would like to see a wide range of things that can be started immediately.
  • Capability enhancement of the ordering party is a major issue unique to information systems. Digital Agency is specializing in the procurement of information systems, and know-how and personnel have been gathered. However, in each ministry and agency, the specialized fields of system procurement and procurement are diverging, and personnel and organizations that can do both are not yet in place. The key issue for the future is how to build and develop a system and personnel that can accumulate know-how for the procurement of information systems by each ministry and agency.
  • I think it is very important to accumulate the knowledge and experience of the ordering party. There is a description of procurement record information in the third item of the medium-term measures. The terminology should be organized to clarify what is to be created. I understand that you are going to create some kind of database for procurement record information and consider how to utilize it based on the discussions so far. However, we have had experience in creating various databases that have not been used. Therefore, it may be better to describe what is to be created in an easy-to-understand manner at a glance so that it is clear that what is required is created in a unified manner.
  • I agree with you as a short-term measure, but we tend to stop at the creation of specifications and the implementation of training. I think it is important to establish a procurement consultation service as a medium-term measure. I think that listening to concerns about daily work and making improvements will lead to growth that is most suited to actual work. I would like to see a system that is firmly rooted in the field.

Regarding "Policy Direction (3) Expanding Opportunities for SMEs and Startup Companies to Enter the Market"

  • We would like to see the expansion of entry by small and medium-sized start-up companies, but measures to eliminate bidding by a single bidder are different from policies to support small and medium-sized companies with advanced technologies. Therefore, we would like to see the purpose of expansion of entry plans clarified before considering specific measures.
  • For contracts that do not have an upper limit on the amount of damages, I would like you to advance discussions so that a maximum amount can be included. Otherwise, the situation where it is difficult for small and medium-sized enterprises and startups to enter will continue.
  • The use of re-outsourcing is described as a temporary measure, so there is no sense of incongruity. However, as a medium-term measure, I think there is an item to prepare a guideline for re-outsourcing to prevent middle outsourcing, but I think measures to prevent middle outsourcing will be required when utilizing re-outsourcing, so there is room for consideration whether to incorporate the guideline into short-term measures.
  • The third medium-term measure is the unification of formats, which I think is important for simplifying administrative procedures. Otherwise, paperless operations and digitalization cannot be realized in the original sense. This may be a difficult part practically, but since it is not bound by laws and regulations, couldn't it be included in a short period of time?
  • It seems that the issues of ③ and ④ overlap, or ③ seems to cover the whole of ④. If ③ is centered on industrial development and ④ is on the transparency of public procurement, I would like it to be described more clearly.
  • The expansion of opportunities to participate is not a problem specific to information systems, but can be said to be a general problem in public procurement if fairness is put on the axis. I thought that the trial of the new platform was the part where the biggest problem was raised. Regarding the construction of the platform, there are similar systems such as the registration system for contractors who can accept orders in the public works sector, and procedures such as listing up as many contractors as possible who can accept orders and selecting a contractor fairly have been taken as part of the ordering work of each ministry and agency led by the Administrative Reform Secretariat. I would like you to tackle the problem while considering how to cooperate with them. I would like you to proceed with the construction of the platform while keeping in mind whether there is any lack of fairness and transparency when registering a contractor and when ultimately selecting a contractor.
  • The term "responsibility decomposition point" appears in the medium-term measures. The Guidelines for the Provision of Cloud Services prepared by Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications on October 31 also provides a list of responsibility decomposition points. I would like to be able to refer to it.

"Policy Direction ④ Elimination of vender lock-in"

  • In the first of the mid-term measures, there are items such as disclosure of source code and ensuring security. From a legal perspective, I think there are solutions such as signing an NDA, signing a confidentiality agreement, and partially open-sourcing it, or making it available only among government agencies. I would like you to consider this in concrete terms.
  • "Although the Bayh-Dole Act and other legislation are likely to limit laws and regulations's ability to protect intellectual property rights, it may be advisable for the government to first clarify what is possible and to what extent, and then identify any obstacles that may be in the way. The government should then consider legal revisions and other measures."
  • If we look at the future vision on page 9 of the handout, we can see the discussion of RFIs, community interaction, and source code in the section titled "Elimination of vender lock-in." We believe that RFIs and community interaction should also be included in the main policies.
  • I believe that the discussion on the elimination of vender lock-in was triggered by the results of a survey conducted by Japan Fair Trade Commission in February of this year. As specific issues have been raised based on questionnaires and hearings conducted by each ministry and agency, I think it would be a good idea to promptly start drawing up specific guidelines. I would like to avoid moving too quickly, but since Japan Fair Trade Commission has raised specific issues, I would like you to start drawing up the guidelines as soon as possible after examining the issues as soon as possible.
  • In the United States, the National Institute of Standards and Technology has created a framework for the software supply chain, and last year, the House of Representatives passed a law on supply chain management. Regarding security, I think it is necessary to consider a system that can guarantee security.

"Policy Direction ⑤ Ensuring Transparency through Internal Controls, etc."

  • This is not an issue specific to information systems, but is related to the whole public procurements. As far as information systems are concerned, I don't think much attention has been paid to the lessons learned from the failures of ODB in the past. How should the results of information systems be compiled and made public, and shared among ministries and agencies? How will Digital Agency translate them into guidelines? I would like to see an appropriate institutional design that suits cost effectiveness, transparency, and the registration of achievements.
  • The Mid-term Measures state that "the information to be disclosed externally will be considered." However, in order to exchange data between systems, for example, attaching a unique reference identifier to a company in the supplier data, data linkage between procurement information systems, and use of international data standards will enable differentiation and comparison with other countries. When organizing procurement information, I think it is very important to be aware of data standards from the beginning. When considering a system, please also consider the development of identifiers and data standards.
  • In order to ensure the effectiveness of the PDCA cycle, I think it is very important for the support department and the auditing department to work together. I think it is very important to support them from a positive perspective so that auditing does not become a drag on the procurement side. I would like to re-emphasize the mindset and the line of sight, including whether it is okay to use the name Auditing Department.
  • Regarding the clarification of system procurement information, the current procurement portal is difficult to search, so I would like it to be revised. Also, if the qualifications for participation in procurement are eased, why do SMEs have to go see it? I think a system should be established to inform people that they are qualified to participate in procurement. How about applying the system of gBizID, etc.?

Other general comments and additional opinions

  • As the secretariat of the Digital Agency, we are considering what we can do, but it is unclear whether legal revisions are necessary or possible under the current law, and some procedures may be suspended. We would like the committee members to include in the report suggestions for legal revisions on areas that require legal revisions.
  • There are a lot of things to be implemented in Digital Agency, but I think it is necessary to prioritize among the measures. In the process of compiling a report in the future, I think it is necessary to discuss what to prioritize. Please pay attention so that the measures taken up in the report can be implemented.
  • In relation to start-up companies, it is important to promote the entry of push type, but I think it is important to approach public procurement in a transparent manner. I would like you to consider the mechanism.
  • It is divided into short - and medium-term measures, but I think it is very important to show when to shift to the medium term, whether it can really be implemented, what the feasibility is, and the progress of the measures. Showing that things are improving, even if little by little, is an opportunity to build trust with the people. I would like you to consider it. It is not necessary to follow the roadmap as a waterfall from the beginning, but I think it would be good if there was a place to report and introduce the progress.
  • It is difficult to ask another organization to implement rules, but I don't think overall optimization can be achieved without doing so. It is also necessary to make a plan for implementing policies in Digital Agency while listening to opinions from the private sector and correcting the course.
  • Some companies are in trouble because they do not have a model for writing proposals. For example, will they teach writing methods through exchanges between companies or through the provision of texts from the government? If these issues are improved, venture companies and small and medium-sized enterprises will raise their hands more and procurement will become more vigorous.
  • It may be a good idea to reconsider the way of evaluation, such as how to evaluate high technical capability even if it is impossible to write proposals. Isn't it important to consider various mechanisms to find an evaluation method that is easy to express, not only from the viewpoint of the ordering party but also from the viewpoint of the supplier?

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