MDDI's Response to PQ on Measuring Institute of Digital Government's Effectiveness Beyond Course Completion Rates

Parliament Sitting on 3 November 2026

Question for Oral Answer

*67. Mr Lee Hong Chuang asked the Minister for Digital Development and Information (a) whether the effectiveness of the Institute of Digital Government (IDG) will be measured beyond course completion rates and if so, how; (b) whether the curriculum will cover the ethical, responsible and accountable use of AI alongside technical proficiency; and (c) whether the Ministry has set targets for improving public service quality, efficiency and accessibility through the IDG, and how progress towards these will be measured.

Answer

By end-2028, IDG aims to equip more than 150,000 public officers with practical digital, data, and AI capabilities to improve productivity and deliver better services to citizens and businesses. We will measure our success not only through course or programme completion, but whether officers can apply what they have learnt to drive real improvements in their work.

We will assess IDG’s effectiveness at three levels. First, whether officers have acquired the competency to do their tasks responsibly. IDG uses practical assessments and exercises to consolidate officers’ learning, and work with Whole-of-Government agencies to receive feedback through officers’ supervisors and teams.

Second, we will consider whether officers can apply these capabilities to real workplace problems. Our AI Sprints are one example. Officers work on actual problems within their agencies’ context, learn basic product thinking to frame and refine the problem statement, and then rapidly prototype and test possible solutions with their intended end-users. Since May 2026, the Sprints have reached more than 1,000 officers across Government.

Third, whether these new approaches lead to sustained improvements in the relevant workflows and services. Because public service work is diverse, the appropriate measures will differ across agencies and functions - ranging from time saved and turnaround time, to accuracy, service quality, customer satisfaction and accessibility. We believe agency-specific measures are more meaningful and actionable than a single Government-wide numerical target, as they reflect the actual outcomes that matter most to citizens in each service domain. As part of the Public Sector Transformation efforts, the improvements and product outcomes from each Ministry are shared across Government to track progress and support agency transformation efforts through common enablers.

Safe, responsible and ethical use of AI is an integral part of the capabilities we want Public Service officers to develop. All officers are taught to understand AI's capabilities and limitations, the safeguards for sensitive information, and how to critically assess AI-generated outputs. Importantly, officers are also taught to consider the ethical implications of AI-assisted decisions, and to exercise their judgement and remain accountable for their work. This is embedded in our foundational training for AI literacy, cybersecurity and data protection, with the content regularly refreshed as technology and associated risks evolve.

*Converted to written answer