4 Digital Government Goals Code for Canada is Tackling in 2025

The Canadian digital government and civic technology landscape has shifted significantly since the founding of the Code for Canada in 2017.

It’s easy to feel pessimistic about a lot of that change. After starting as a strong player in the global digital government movement, Canada now finds itself slipping further and further in international rankings.

Departments like the Ontario Digital Service have been disbanded, while talented public servants have struggled to deliver digital services while navigating outdated procurement processes, siloed working environments and a lack of digital talent and capacity. We’re also seeing a disturbing chill in the use of Diversity, Inclusion and Equity principles at home and around the world.

These causes for concern are real. But the moment we find ourselves in is also the reason why Code for Canada was created in the first place. We know that thousands of dedicated public servants are determined to overcome these challenges to deliver great services. And we know that they can’t do it alone. That’s why we are here, as a trusted and unbiased partner, to work shoulder-to-shoulder to meet the needs of people across the country.

With that goal in mind, here are four digital government challenges we’ll be tackling in 2025.

Helping to navigate the AI landscape

Across Canada, governments are rushing to develop rules for using AI in the public sector. While much of this initial guidance has been rooted in best practices, public servants still need support to understand how to responsibly use this technology for the public good.

Whether it’s understanding the right use cases for off-the-shelf generative AI tools, creating the necessary datasets for training a large learning model, or learning best practices to underpin all AI use, we’re here to help our government partners navigate this new landscape.

Last year, we released our ethical AI principles and led our first workshops on AI in government. This year, we’ll be releasing new resources on responsible AI and helping even more partners unlock its benefits while avoiding its risks.

Taking the risk out of legacy digital systems

Speaking of risk — across the country, essential digital services are at risk of failure because of risky legacy systems and technologies.

The public servants tasked with modernizing these decades-old systems often don’t know where to start. That’s why last year, we introduced our Options Analysis service, where we conduct an in-depth assessment of an existing service or system and create an actionable strategy for the best path forward.

This year, we’re taking it across the country to derisk and improve service delivery.

Finding the accessibility holes in digital services

Public digital services should work for all, not just some, users. But all too often, that’s not the case.

Across Canada, public servants are struggling to create digital experiences that go beyond basic compliance to achieve true accessibility. Over the last few years, we’ve grown our Inclusive User Research service nationwide.

Now, we’re focused on helping test everything from government websites to digital public transit cards. We want to ensure that the voices of people with disabilities and other marginalized communities are reflected in these essential services.

Filling the digital talent gap

Securing the digital talent and skills needed to deliver digital services continues to be a challenge for all levels of government.

From day one, we’ve placed top digital professionals inside government teams to offer their skills and expertise while growing the public service’s digital capacity.

This year, we’re taking that work to new parts of the country, from BC to Alberta in the west to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia in the east. We won’t stop until the Canadian public has the effective, inclusive and accessible digital services they deserve.