news The government’s web content management system GovCMS has reportedly seen more than twice the number of agencies and institutions adopting the service than initially estimated.
Government agencies have launched govCMS sites at a rate of more than one per week since the Department of Finance officially launched govCMS in March 2015.
This doubles estimates for first-year adoption outlined in an earlier Department of Finance-commissioned study, according to statement from software-as-a-service firm Acquia, the platform provider.
Additionally, it added, there are 16 additional sites currently in development on govCMS – a cloud-based, Drupal-powered platform.
The govCMS team has taken the position that adoption of govCMS should reflect the quality of the service so, as a result, the service is not mandatory.
GovCMS now supports 58 government sites for 28 agencies, including the Department of Human Services, Australian Taxation Office, Department of Social Services, Department of Communications and more.
“The govCMS project is truly a global example of digital transformation and best practice on an outstanding scale. We’re proud to support the govCMS team in exceeding its goals well ahead of time,” said Graham Sowden, General Manager, Asia Pacific & Japan, at Acquia.
In February, govCMS also launched a ‘Government as an API’ service with Acquia Content Hub, aimed to help government agencies to create ‘content once, and publish everywhere’ (COPE).
GovCMS was made available for download as a open-source Drupal distribution in mid-2015 and has been downloaded more than 8,000 times since, Acquia said.
While Acquia manages the govCMS platform and provides application level support, other activities such as design, site builds and migration services are performed by Australian-owned small businesses.
GovCMS helps state and local government agencies in Australia meet required digital government standards through its secure, reliable, flexible open-source solution.
It is a managed cloud platform for developing and running websites that helps teams, sometimes with limited resources and skills, reduce the time and effort spent on development, processing and hosting.
Agencies adopting govCMS benefit from a standardised procurement model and compliance with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).