Global E-Government Industry
With rising use of mobile devices, citizens are increasingly in the habit of connecting to the internet to carry out day-to-day tasks for convenience and time saving. Factors contributing to the growth of e-government include not only mobile services but also cloud computing, citizen awareness and green e-government.
According to Budde Comm, the number of citizens subscribing to e-government services worldwide is expected to triple by 2016. Citizens are increasingly taking advantage of all e-services, including e-education and e-health. Online social services represent a resource with huge potential to build a sustainable future through the efficiency afforded by solutions using digital infrastructure. The number of e-government users and the amount of investment in the sector are both set to show significant growth.
Cloud computing will continue to play a role in e-government, along with integrated mobile services. One challenge to the sector is cybercrime, which continues to rise in tandem with internet use. Internet governance will play an important role moving forward as governments seek to implement international systems concerning technical governance and management. Demand for e-services is rising in established markets but is also expected to rise in developing markets like Africa due to increasing broadband penetration.
Challenges
Communication and information management are made difficult by factors such as customer diversity, transparency requirements and policy ambiguity. Differing end goals and working methods makes the public sector rife with cross-purposes and discord. Harmonizing protocol, ways of working and overall goals represents a vital aspect of making e-government effective and efficient.
Finding ways to encourage collaboration and information sharing between actors in the public sector represents a significant challenge for e-government. Cross-agency initiatives will have to be deployed to combat obstacles to cohesive, cooperative initiatives.
Regional Developments
The Australian government provides advanced e-government services, which may be improved by the setting up of a fiber-based broadband network, reports Budde Comms. The Australian government pledged a National Health Medicare rebate plan for online and other services in which State investment could exceed $390 million. E-health services were built for more than 15,000 General Practitioners through collaboration between the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners and telecommunications company Telstra. These services are forecast to cut healthcare costs by 10%-20%.
Spain’s e-services are currently under development. The country’s information society strategy, called Plan Avanza, has been able to activate under $10 billion over a four-year period from stakeholders at national, non-national and non-governmental levels, reports the OECD.
