Increasing Voice and Transparency Using ICT Tools: (E-Government, E-Governance) PRMPS Workshop: Decentralization and Intergovernmental Fiscal Reform March 26, 2003

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Increasing Voice and Transparency Using ICT
Tools (E-Government, E-Governance)PRMPS
Workshop Decentralization and Intergovernmental
Fiscal ReformMarch 26, 2003

• Arsala Deane
• adeane_at_worldbank.org
• World Bank E-Government Websites
• http//www1.worldbank.org/publicsector/egov/
• http//www.developmentgateway.org
• http//www.infodev.org

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Presentation Structure

• World Bank Experience To Date
• Some Conceptual Issues
• Case Studies Successes and Failures
• Challenges
• Critical Success Factors

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What is E-Government?

• E-Government The use of ICT tools such as
  Internet, mobile computing and cellular phones by
  government to streamline processes and
  transactions.
• The resulting benefits include
• Make the working of the government more efficient
  and effective
• Disseminate information about government
  procedures and rules
• Save costs and capture revenue
• Improve service delivery to citizens and
  businesses and other arms of government

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What is E-Governance?

• E-Governance implies the use of ICT channels to
  change the way citizens and businesses interact
  with government to enable

• Citizen Involvement in Decision Making Giving
  citizens a voice in govt planning
• Increased Access to Information empowering
  citizens and civil society with knowledge
• More Transparency increasing the openness of
  government processes and procedures, reducing
  intermediaries
• Civil Society Strengthening Empowering civil
  society to create a meaningful public debate

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World Bank Supporting E-Government Projects
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3 Stages of E-Government/E-Governance Evolution
Less about technology and more about a process of
reform in the way government conducts its
business, delivers services, and interacts with
citizens.
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ICT can contribute towards public sector reform
goals if the following 6 key dimensions are taken
into consideration in design and implementation
phase
Enabling Factors for E-Applications
E-Skills for Citizens and Government
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Local Govt Responsiveness in Madhya Pradesh,
India

• Gyandoot 40 rural cyber cafes.
  (www.gyandoot.net), Serving ½ million inhabitants
  in rural areas.
• Total cost 50,000 for network, set up of one
  kiosk is 1, 250
• Nearly 35 Services Provided
• Commodity marketing information services and
  village auction site
• Applying for a copy of land records, driving
  license, caste certificate
• Filing a complaint in local language Hindi
  e-mail
• Impact
• Government More responsive, transparent,
  accessible.
• Communitylimit role of intermediaries and travel
  time. Complaints responded to within one week.
• Challenges
• Lack of Institutional Capacity Inadequate value
  delivered to clients -- unsolved grievances and
  price data not updated.
• Poor access to ICT infrastructure
• Results in problems of sustainability economic
  viability

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E-Democracy in Yalova Municipality, Turkey

• Interactive municipal services offered through
  website.
• Delivery model Internet Kiosks, contact centers,
  municipal personnel
• Information ProvidedMunicipality budget and cash
  flow, tenders and their results, Assets of City
  Council Members
• E-Democracy
• Citizens can put forward their views online
• Citizens vote on investment proposals
• Impact
• All investments at the district level have to be
  in accordance with public views expressed by
  citizens
• Rustempasa District 75 of all investments have
  been made with citizen participation and input
• Citizens can voice their needs and priorities
• Challenges ICT literacy and Monitoring
  Capabilities

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NGOs use E-Governance to Create an Informed
Citizenry in Lithuania

• Citizen Advisory Services in Lithuania An
  intermediary between the municipality and
  citizen.
• Provide information and offer consultative advice
  on legal, social and other issues, and influence
  the development of social policies locally.
  Target clients come from socially vulnerable
  groups (youth, elderly, unemployed).
• Set up of 15 offices, some of them located within
  municipal offices with volunteer advisors.
  Offices provide access to Internet and to CDROM
  that provides information on laws, social
  services, setting up of business.
• Citizens seek advice and information on social
  security health care employment housing human
  rights legal advice education and training
  business customs duties.
• Goal help to promote effective, transparent and
  accountable public administration and policy
  making and create informed citizenry.

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The Challenge of E-Government

• Political will and culture of openness is
  critical
• Citizen and Government capacity to interact over
  online channels
• Transparency of processes/automation is seen as
  threatening to jobs
• Institutional capacity to adapt to new way of
  doing things can government effectively respond?
• Few efforts made to create assessment tools to
  evaluate e-government projects evidence is
  anecdotal

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Critical Success Factors

• Political Leadership required for guiding
  government agency through transition
• ICT is not a magic bullet, can contribute to
  better governance only when it is used as a tool
  to complement broader reform initiatives
• Policies need to support new processes I.e.
  Information Access and Disclosure Policies
• Citizens are the e-government experts
  e-government services should be piloted with the
  full participation of citizens before a
  government invests in a project. (citizen
  steering committees, focus groups, NGOs can help
  with design and evaluation)
• Citizens who participate must receive some
  return on involvement.
• ICT is a neutral tool, can contribute to
  decentralization in the right institutional
  environment and committed reform agenda.

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• Thank You
• Arsala Deane
• http//www1.worldbank.org/publicsector/egov/