Tasmanian Premier Peter Gutwein and Minister for Science and Technology Michael Ferguson addressed a packed room of ICT Industry stakeholders at a networking event conducted by TasICT on Tuesday.
The event marked the return of face to face peer interaction functions, the first since COVID-19 restrictions were introduced in March this year. More than 80 people representing businesses in the Information, Communication and Technology sector took the opportunity to catch up with their colleagues at Hobart’s Old Woolstore Apartment Hotel. Although COVID-19 restrictions applied to the way the networking event was conducted, those in attendance welcomed the opportunity to meet in person rather than online.
During his welcoming address, TasICT President Martin Anderson announced the release of statistics relating to the contribution of the ICT sector to the Tasmanian economy. Titled ‘State of ICT in Tasmania’ the document revealed that the ICT private sector generated $692 million for the economy in 2019, representing about 2.1% of Tasmania’s $32 billion Gross State Growth. The figures also revealed that Tasmania’s ICT sector employs some 7,200 people across both government and the private sector. The ICT industry represents the 7th largest non-public sector employer group.
The ‘Drinks with the Premier and Minister’ function is one of the many regular Tapas & Technology networking events conducted by TasICT – the Peak Industry Body for the Information, Communication and Technology Sector. It’s the second year the two key political leaders have addressed ICT industry representatives in the Hobart and Launceston forums, and TasICT CEO Steve Adermann is confident the functions will be held annually.
The event concluded with a reflection on how the NBN had played a vital role in keeping business and the community connected during the past six months of the global pandemic. NBN were a sponsor of the event along with the Mercury Newspaper.
