Govt. Agencies Warned To Expect IT Gear Shortages

CANBERRA:  The Australian Government has warned agencies they are likely to face lengthy delays in acquiring new IT gear, due to the growing onset of the coronavirus.

The government-based Digital Transformation Agency (DTA)  has told the agencies to expect interruptions to manufacturing of hardware products, with closures of factories and suspension of cargo movements.

According to a spokesperson: “The DTA has been informed that there may be interruptions to manufacturing of hardware products, with closures of factories and suspension of cargo movements due to the impact of the coronavirus … agencies are advised to factor this into procurement cycles.”

The New Zealand Government has also issued a similar warning and urged government agencies to limit their demand for IT hardware to “urgent and planned activity”.