Kathmandu: The government has issued the Software Development and Operations Committee (Formation) Order, 2083 BS. The cabinet meeting on August 19 approved the order to develop, upgrade, and maintain software used in public institutions and make public service delivery IT-based.
According to National News Agency Nepal, the committee will be responsible for framing the center’s policies and programmes, providing necessary guidance, and coordination. Additionally, it will oversee the work related to software development, upgrade, and maintenance carried out by the center. Hemraj Aryal, the spokesperson and joint secretary at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers (OPMCM), revealed that a six-member committee has been formed under the chairpersonship of the Secretary at OPMCM. This committee will offer policy guidance and oversight to the software development and operations center.
An executive director will be designated as the administrative head of the center, which will have a total of 30 staff, including first-class gazetted officers for various services. The head office of the center will be located in the Kathmandu Valley. Its responsibilities include working on software development, upgrading, and maintenance based on requests from public bodies, as well as managing software systems created by the center itself or various legacy systems requested by public bodies.
The center will also provide 24-hour technical support for software systems developed, offer services to prepare Software Requirement Specifications (SRS) and technical specifications for digital infrastructure, and ensure the use of required security standards. It will incorporate auto-scaling high availability and approved development architecture and standards during software development, or adhere to international standards and best practices.
Furthermore, the center will conduct training for operations and maintenance of the systems it has developed, among other tasks.