Challenges of

e-Government
JAIST U Thein Oo
29th November, 2017 Patron, Myanmar Computer Federation
Chairman, Computer Universities (COE)
Chairman, Myanmar ICT Development Corporation
Chairman, ACE Data Systems Ltd.
Contents
▪ Evolution of e-Government
▪ Challenges and How to overcome them
▪ Success Stories
▪ Myanmar case
▪ Conclusion
Evolution of e-Government
What is e-Government?
▪ “e-Government is the use of ICT by government agencies that have the ability to
transform relations with citizens, businesses, and other arms of government;
promote more efficient and effective government, facilitate more accessible
government services, allow public access to information, and more accountable
to citizens” – World Bank

▪ “e-Government is the use of ICT by different sectors of the society with the aim to
improve their access to information and to build their capacities” - UNESCO
 e-Government to support 2030 Agenda for
Sustainable Development

e-Government promotes SDG through:

 Being catalyst in Policy Integration

 Fostering transparency through Open

Government Data Initiatives

 Engaging people in decision making

through e-participation

 Advancing on-line services and bridging

divides

Source : UN e-Government survey 2016

 e-Government to Digital Government
“The maturity of e-Government is basically judged by no. of online services made available to citizens. In contrast,
maturity of Digital Government is measured by a reduction in the number of discrete services in favor of an integrated
experience” – The Gartner

Stage 1 : Digitizing
Digitize existing services with a focus on citizens’ needs

Stage 2 : Open
Adopt integrated service delivery platforms and open data platforms

Stage 3 : Data Centric

All government data can be accessed through uniform interfaces and new ways of aggregating and analyzing data within or across agencies
lead to new services and service delivery models likely involving non-government entities

Stage 4 : Fully Digital

Data is leveraged across agency boundaries. New value added services are built and provided across multiple channels. Data is not just
shared among agencies but with external partners like banks, employers, retailers where possible in full compliance with Privacy Laws

Stage 5 : Smart

Greater integrated, contextual and personalized services based on Big Data Analytics, AI, Augmented Reality, IoT and Blockchain
 Where does the world stand today?

Source: UN e-Government Survey 2016

 Where does the world stand today?

Source: UN e-Government Survey 2016

 Where does the world stand today?

Source: UN e-Government Survey 2016

 Where does the world stand today?

Source: UN e-Government Survey 2016

 Where does the world stand today?

Source: UN e-Government Survey 2016

 Where does the world stand today?

Evolution of e-Government

Source: UN e-Government Survey 2016

Challenges and How to
overcome them
 Challenges in e-Government
e-Government development is improving nicely. But, there are challenges still remain.

External barriers to e-
e-Government Context
Government Implementation

Internal challenges to e-
Government Implementation

Source: 5th Global Forum on re-inventing e-Government

 Challenges: e-Government Context
Challenges How to overcome the Challenges
Rapid Technology Advancements and Availability Technology neutrality in legislations and regulations to avoid closing off
promising options, and flexibility within broad regulatory frameworks and
adaptation of current laws to digital world.

Performance requirement rather than technical specifications when procuring

new technologies.
Level of Access that citizens and businesses have (Digital Divide) Improve internet, broad-band and mobile access especially to lower income
groups as such disadvantaged groups are often targets of government
interventions and have a higher level of interaction with government.
Overall trust in electronic channels by citizens and businesses The balance between ensuring privacy and security and leveraging the
benefits of internet and information technology is a challenging task.

The government should be a role-model in responsible use of information

systems and networks and ensuring secure use of the system and network.
Expectations of the types of services and how the services are delivered The online-services should be organized and provided according to customer
needs and preferences and not according to internal logic (or illogic) of
government administrations.

The online-services should aim to transcend the agency-based structure and

focus more on providing one-stop, integrated, seamless services across
different agencies.

Source: 5th Global Forum on re-inventing e-Government

 Challenges: external barriers to e-Government
Implementation
Challenges How to overcome the Challenges

Legislative and Regulatory Barriers The introduction and uptake of e-Government services and processes will
remain minimal without a legal equivalence between digital and paper
processes.

The success of e-Government initiatives and processes are highly dependent

on government’s role in ensuring proper legal frameworks for the operations.
Budgetary Barriers Normally, the government agencies operate under budgetary framework of
holding an agency accountable for achieving an organizational objective.

Such budgetary framework may not work for certain e-Government initiatives
and projects.

In terms of funding, treating IT Investment as Capital Expenditure rather than

recurrent expenditure can be a challenge as IT systems keep involving and
involves maintenance and enhancement projects continuously.

When compared to other compelling public policy objectives such as

education, healthcare and security, e-Government initiatives will always be
lower priority.

Introduction of strong Profit-sharing Frameworks and Cross Agency Budget

Allocations are necessary.

Source: 5th Global Forum on re-inventing e-Government

 Challenges: external barriers to e-Government
Implementation
Challenges How to overcome the Challenges

Common Technical Frameworks and Infrastructure Barriers to seamless service delivery arise from the inability of agencies to
communicate with each other.

A National initiative for establishing shared systems, common rules or

standards and shared infrastructure can provide better economy both in terms
of reducing redundant systems and infrastructure as well as lowering legal
and technical barriers for collaboration across organizations.

Source: 5th Global Forum on re-inventing e-Government

 Challenges: Traditional Budgeting and
Budgeting for ICT Investment

Challenges How to overcome the Challenges

Single-year (or biennial) expenditures Multi-years investments

Programme-by-Programme Performance Enterprise or cross-boundary performance

Financial Cost/Benefits Financial and non-Financial Cost/Benefits

Level of effort within existing workflow Changes in the workflow

On-going Operations “Start-up” Operations

Control Innovation

Source: 5th Global Forum on re-inventing e-Government, Harvard Policy Group (2001)
 Challenges: internal challenges to e-
Government Implementation
Challenges How to overcome the Challenges

Ensuring a common vision A common vision is essential to e-Government as a mean to engage and
coordinate agencies.

A government-wide vision helps to tie e-Government initiatives with broader

strategic and reform objectives. It can promote inter-ministerial co-ordination,
ensure balance and fairness.
Providing leadership at many levels Government are required to provide effective public services but always facing
time constraints, lack of resources and lack of political pressure.

e-Government is about change and many e-government advances are mostly

driven by enthusiasm of individuals and individual agencies.

There is always considerable resistance to change particularly to the level of

change required to achieve significant efficiencies and service enhancements
through seamless online services are to be realized.

Leadership is also catalyst for innovation.

Strengthening co-ordination The nature of e-Government requires a level of co-operative action to ensure
interoperability, avoid duplication, ensure coherent action in a range of crucial
areas such as security and privacy protection.

It is crucial to get the balance right between agencies’ responsibility for results
and autonomous on operation and ensuring interoperable systems and share
information resources.

Source: 5th Global Forum on re-inventing e-Government

 Challenges: internal challenges to e-
Government Implementation
Challenges How to overcome the Challenges

Public-Private Partnership Engagement with Private-sector Suppliers is an integral feature of government

use of ICT. Public-Private relationships broadened from the acquisition of
products and services which government cannot provide to services such as
system operations to direct provision to end-users of government services.

Accountability, scrutiny and audit requirements are needed to be balanced

with providing enough flexibility for innovative arrangements and preserving
required level of oversight of public expenditure.

The specifications of outputs can be difficult in arrangements designed to

operate over a long period and which allow for future resetting of priorities. If
the specifications are too tight, it may be necessary to renegotiate. If they are
too broad, requirements may be unclear. Arrangements to deal with failure
also need to be clear.

It is necessary to accept that both parties should share the risks and the
benefits.

Retaining the public administration capacity to manage the relationship with

the private partner is of crucial concern.

There should be structured review and clauses to avoid lock-in to one service
provider.

Source: 5th Global Forum on re-inventing e-Government

 Challenges: internal challenges to e-
Government Implementation
Challenges How to overcome the Challenges

Meeting rapidly changing skill needs e-Government initiatives increase the importance of the ICT-related skills
required by public administration workforces. The skill requirement for e-
Government are not simply technical. It includes basic technical
understanding (IT Literacy) to understanding Information Management and
Information Society.

Key Management people must be able to lead the organization’s IT

Department and outside partners, and they must be able to negotiate the
organization’s ICT strategy within the broader goals of organization. In
addition, new competencies are needed in areas such as organizational
change management, co-operation and collaboration between agencies,
public-private partnerships, accountability frameworks and performance
management.

Specific training programs are required to provide management people to

develop information management and information society skills so that they
can manage the information strategy for the organization and deal with the
impact of e-Government.
Monitoring and Evaluation It is very important that government can show concrete benefits of ICT
Investments in order to maintain and gain political support

A framework for assessment must be prepared prior to initiation. “Success”

needs to be clearly defined and both implementers and evaluators must agree
on the definition of success.

Source: 5th Global Forum on re-inventing e-Government

Success Stories
 e-Government Development Index (EGDI)
Ranking

Source: UN e-Government Survey 2016

 Highlights of UK e-Government Journey

1994
open.gov.uk was
launched 2000
ukonline.gov.uk was
launched 2003
Businesslink.gov.uk was launched

Government Secured All UK government websites

2004Intranet for central and

local governments was 2007and services are moved under
directgov.uk and 2009data.gov.uk
launched
was

launched businesslink.gov.uk

First wave of fully

2015 digitalized service are
launched
2017
Digital Strategy 2017

Source: gov.uk
 UK Digital Strategy 2017
Connectivity • Build world-class digital infrastructure

Digital Skills and Inclusion • Give everyone access to the digital skills they need

Digital Sectors • Make UK best place to start and grow Digital Business

Digital Economy • Help every British business become a digital business

Safe and Secure Cyber Space • Make UK the safest place to live and work online

Digital Government • Maintain UK Government as world leader in serving its citizens online

• Unlock the power of data in UK Economy and improve public confidence in its use
Data

Source: gov.uk
 UK Digital Strategy 2017

Build better workplace tools and

Continue to Deliver world class
Develop right skills and culture process to make it easier for public
Digital Services
servants to work effectively

Make better use of data to enable Create, operate, iterate and embed
transformation across government good use of shared platforms
and private sector based on open standards

Source: gov.uk
 Highlights of Singapore e-Government Journey

Source: igov.sg
Singapore Intelligent/Smart Nation 2015 (iN2015)

Connectivity • Build Wireless@SG

Learning • Give everyone access to a wealth of interactive digital learning resources

• Develop the infrastructure that will transform healthcare delivery and

empower individuals, giving them more control of their health through
Open Data (Health Care) access to personal healthcare records and relevant healthcare
information

• Create Singapore as premier wealth management center with intelligent

Economic Component data management and analysis and efficient back-office processes and
the assurance of authentication, privacy, information systems and security

• Citizens must be able to access proactive, user-friendly, responsive and

integrated digital services even on the move
Integrated Government • Citizens must be able to provide feedback and exchange views with
Government on public policies anytime anywhere
 Highlights of Japan e-Government Journey

Source: Hideaki Takeda, National Institute of Informatics, “Open Data Towards Open Government” Conference, November 2014
Japan’s declaration to be the world’s most
advanced IT Nation 2014
▪ To become a society that encourages the creation of new and innovative
industries and services and the growth of all industries
▪ To become world’s safest and most disaster-resilient society where people can
live safely with peace of main and comfort
▪ One-stop Public Services that anyone can access anytime anywhere
Myanmar Case
 Myanmar e-Government Framework

Source: Myanmar e-Government Plan 2015, ADB

 Myanmar’s e-Government Situation : High Level
Assessment

Source: Myanmar e-Government Plan 2015, ADB

 Myanmar Information Technology Policies

Source: Myanmar e-Government Plan 2015, ADB

Conclusion
 e-Government vision is changing rapidly. The intrinsic value of e-Government lies not technology level but rather as an enabler for growth and
development.

 e-Government development is improving. At the same time, disparities remain within and among countries. Lack of access to technology, poverty
and inequality prevent people from fully taking advantage of the potential of e-government.

 Require governments’ unwavering commitment, courageous leadership, creativity, innovation as well as strong capacities and adequate means
of implementation.

 Effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels, in the framework of peaceful and inclusive societies

 Require far-sighted and holistic decision-making; fundamental Rethinking and Radical Redesign of business processes to achieve Dramatic
Improvements

 An unprecedented level of policy integration and institutional coordination is needed. Public and private sector actors take an integrated and
balanced approach to social, economic, environmental and other dimensions


 Advances in e-government must go hand in hand with efforts to bridge the digital divide – an effort which ICT can greatly facilitate “Leaving no one
behind”

 “Systems” can be developed for all sectors: Health, Education, Agriculture, Trade, Manufacturing, Services, environment, etc. that allow leapfrogs