AUSTRALIA National Overview IT Infrastructure Assessment Presented

AUSTRALIA National Overview & IT Infrastructure Assessment Presented by Steve Bean

AUSTRALIA Down Under? 2

AUSTRALIA History • Inhabited 50, 000 years ago – Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples • European Settlement – – – 1770, Capt James Cook claimed for the British Crown Transport of 160, 000 convicts from 1788 -1868 Free settlers come for wool industry & gold rush Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 Immigration Restriction Act 1901 -1945 • Modern Society – Major nation-building projects in 1950 s – Ethnic diversity produced by post-world war immigration – Today one of the most cosmopolitan and dynamic societies 3

AUSTRALIA Coastal & Urban Area Populations 4

AUSTRALIA Government • Democratic, federal-state system recognizing the British monarch as sovereign • 95% voter turnout, it’s the law • Executive Branch – Chief of State, Queen of Australia ELIZABETH II – Governor General, Michael Jeffery – Head of Government, Prime Minister John Howard • Legislative Branch – Commonwealth Parliament, Senate (76 seats) House of Rep (150 seats) • Judicial Branch – High Court, Chief Justice and six other Justices 5

AUSTRALIA Political Environment for IT • High political stability • Government promotes use of IT • Open information sharing with few trade barriers • Few regulations/restrictions of IT • Ranked 7. 7 on scale of 10 for legal and copyright protection. 6

AUSTRALIA Educational System • • Literacy rate is 100% IT literacy rate is 66% One in five Australians has a university degree 40 universities and over 100 other higher education institutions • More than 400, 000 students from around 200 countries • 8% of GDP allocated to research & development 7

AUSTRALIA Language & Culture • Hofstede Rankings – MAS 35 th, UAI 17 th, PDI 13 th, IND 49 th • English is the native language – English 79%, Chinese 2%, Italian 2%, other 11%, unspecified 6% • Demographics – Caucasian 92%, Asian 7%, Aboriginal & other 1% • Diversity – One in four Australians came from another country 8

AUSTRALIA Multilingual Workforce 9

AUSTRALIA Aborigines Influence • ~ 1% population • Reconciliation issues 10

AUSTRALIA Aging Population 11

AUSTRALIA IT Diffusion • Telephones – 57% of households have phone lines – Mobile phone use is increasing rapidly • Computers – 66% of households have computers • Televisions – Average 2 sets per household, 99% of population have access to television 12

AUSTRALIA Internet & PC Usage 13

AUSTRALIA Telecommunications • Internet connections – 14. 2 million users – 12 th for e-business readiness (EIU) • Domestic communications – Fiber optics cable with satellite backup • International connectivity – Sydney link to Asia, North America & Europe – Perth link to SE Asia, Europe, Africa & the Middle East 14

AUSTRALIA Fiberoptic Network 15

AUSTRALIA Telstra visits house in bush www. nicholsoncartoons. com. au 16

AUSTRALIA Infrastructure • Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) – Adheres with United Nations (UN/EDIFACT) – Comply with US and Canadian ANSI/X 12 • Digital networks – $2. 5 billion invested in telecommunications • ISDN/fiber availability – 96% of the population 17

AUSTRALIA Computer Industry • Generates about 4% of the GDP • More than 22, 000 ICT Businesses • ASX* Corporations – 94 software and service – 44 technology hardware and equipment • Large Foreign Multinationals Presence – Outsourcing service providers (IBM, EDS, CSC) – Software providers (Microsoft, Oracle) – Network system providers (Sun Microsystems, Cisco) *ASX = Australian Stock Exchange 18

AUSTRALIA Economy • GDP per capita, $30, 700 ranked 17 th • Foreign direct investment, $813. 5 Billion (2001) • Strong international joint ventures have helped endure crisis situations • Australian Stock Exchange impressive showing past three years – Recently S&P ASX/200 reached 5000+ 19

AUSTRALIA Bridge Between East & West 20

AUSTRALIA Foreign Trade • Import Partners – US 14. 8%, China 12. 7%, Japan 11. 8%, Germany 5. 8%, Singapore 4. 4%, UK 4. 1% • Export Partners – Japan 18. 7%, China 9. 2%, US 8. 1%, South Korea 7. 7%, New Zealand 7. 4%, India 4. 6%, UK 4. 2% 21

AUSTRALIA Asian Trade ‘Boomerang’ 22

AUSTRALIA Australian Dollar • aka the “Aussie Battler” • Exchange rate. 72 per US $1 • 4 -5% of worldwide foreign exchange transactions • 6 th most traded currency 23

AUSTRALIA Consumer Debt 24

AUSTRALIA Future Still Looks Promising 25

AUSTRALIA Summary • Overall Assessment of IT Capability – Advanced infrastructure with strong government promotion – Early adopters and widespread diffusion of IT • Attractiveness from an IT Strategic Perspective – Good location & cross-cultural population for global economy – Investment flow helping to maintain market competitiveness • Other Pertinent Information – – High consumer debt, aging population concerns Trade deficit recovery Closer ties with Asia-Pacific countries promising Continued GDP growth 26