Information Policy

E-government is a dangerous tightrope

By Josh Taylor

Today, the New Zealand government revealed its latest growth and budget forecasts, and admitted that things look worse than they were feared earlier.

Growth rates have been downgraded, and earlier commitments to return the budget to surplus within a few years may now not be met. Such forecasts have renewed fears of a butchery of the public service, with cost-cutting lay-offs fuelled by a switch to e-government.

Earlier this week, New Zealand Prime Minister John Key raised the prospect of the country's citizenry communicating with various government departments through the use of smartphones. Back-office functions would be merged, and there would be greater use of call centres.

Overseas companies may also be engaged to run operations, and Key revealed that he has met with Google to see how such a situation might work. He cited Air New Zealand as an example for the public sector to follow in its greater use of technology.

ICT Minister Amy Adams also spoke on how government would also use more ICT in its delivery.

Naturally, we have seen warnings from the opposition Labour Party and the unions, both of which fear the impact of job losses and on the quality of such public services. They raised the prospect of call centres being overseas, but we have heard no talk yet of where such future call centres might be located.

As far as I know, all government call centres are based here in New Zealand, and there has been a recent trend for offshore call-centre work to return "home", particularly with the telcos.

Wellington's tech sector has also warned government to keep future technology work in New Zealand.

Certainly, considering that the government has social and economic goals, it would be folly to send work offshore and use foreign businesses if it came at the price of unemployment and damaging our own tech sector. The government needs to look at the wider costs of any off-shoring or overseas firms winning contracts.

However, perhaps the greater concerns about the government's cuts, and its move to e-services, are fears that we will have a "Google government", which is alienated from the populace.

It's all well and good having an efficient, tech-led government, where services can easily be accessed online by the educated and tech savvy, but the government must consider those who are not, such as the poor and elderly, who tend to be the greatest users of government services in many cases.

There will be people who simply "want to talk to someone", something recognised by Barclays Bank when automation was in its infancy, as shown by the bank's classic 1985 TV commercial from director Ridley Scott after he made the movie Blade Runner.

Prime Minister John Key is right to raise efficiency savings and how services and public interaction with government can be made better through a greater use of technology; however, he must walk a tightrope between maintaining standards of customer service and cutting too far.

http://www.zdnet.com.au/e-government-is-a-dangerous-tightrope-339331869.htm

Bahrain launches online tendering system

Bahrain has announced the launch of a new online tendering system for companies bidding for government contracts.

The Tender Board and the eGovernment Authority (eGA) launched the first phase of the eTendering System, which will initially enable government departments to prepare application documents, submit tender documents and allow suppliers and contractors from the private sector to purchase documents through it.

It was unveiled in a ceremony held under the patronage of Deputy Premier and Supreme Committee of Information and Communication Technology chairman Shaikh Mohammed bin Mubarak Al Khalifa, at the Ritz-Carlton Bahrain Hotel and Spa.

'Efforts will continue to implement the second phase which covers the full cycle of the eTendering process - starting from submitting applications of offers, announcing tender invitations for review of the willing bidders to accepting and depositing offers submitted by bidders with confidentiality and protection,' said Tender Board chairman and Housing Minister Bassim Al Hamer.

'This will later be followed by opening tenders in thorough transparency and clear evaluation of the offers, and finally announcing the awarded company, all being done online,' Al Hamer added.

The ceremony also included the launch of the board portal www.tenderboard.gov.bh, which contains information on rules, regulations and tender-related data, in addition to news and activities.

'The portal also provides features of live broadcast for the opening tenders during the weekly meetings held every Thursday and includes additional features such as interacting with smartphones and developing advanced search features,' he said.

Al Hamer said the eContent on the site had been revised to meet United Nations standards for public institutions' websites.

'We are keen on implementing the system which will improve government performance and facilitate procedures related to government tenders and purchases,' he said.

'The process involves all government tenders, transactions and purchases as governed by the Tender Law,' the minister added.

He said the system will be under the supervision of the board and aimed to engage the private sector in a more efficient way.

The system is also designed to reduce administrative costs and time taken to finalise procedures.

'Additionally, it increases the level of quality and transparency in the decision-making process and decreases the number of complaints,' he said.

Al Hamer revealed the board had already started using iPad applications and reducing paperwork, which resulted in saving effort and costs. 'We have also succeeded in enhancing the board's work,' he said.

eGA chief executive and board member Mohammed Ali Al Qaed said the initiative was a step towards a comprehensive strategy for establishing an integrated tendering system.

The board earlier signed a memorandum of understanding with Tamkeen to organise a training programme for suppliers and contractors in the private sector to help them use the system to perform all types of transactions related to government tenders and purchases.

Tamkeen chief executive Mahmood Al Kooheji said the BD42,000 programme provided free training to business owners to become adept at using the system, including how to register, receive notifications, submit bids and track tenders through the eTendering portal.

He said 450 business owners had already benefited from the programme.

'It is one of a wide range of Tamkeen programmes aimed specifically at enterprises, which are open to all business owners in Bahrain, citizens and expats,' he said. 'To date, these have benefited more than 12,000 business owners in Bahrain.

http://www.tradearabia.com/news/LAW_212752.html

M-Government: Mobile Technologies for Responsive Governments and Connected Societies (ITU, OECD 2011)

Mobile phones subscriptions have outnumbered Internet connections in both developed and developing countries, and mobile cellular is becoming the most rapidly adopted technology in history and the most popular and widespread personal technology in the world. Access to mobile networks is available to 90% of the world population, and to 80 % of the population living in rural areas, according to ITU World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators database; and among OECD countries mobile subscriptions grew at a compounded annual growth rate of 10 % over the previous two years according to the OECD Communications Outlook 2009.

 

Given this unparalleled advancement of mobile communication technologies, governments are turning to m-government to realize the value of mobile technologies for responsive governance and measurable improvements to social and economic development, service delivery, operational efficiencies and active citizen engagement. The interoperability of mobile applications, which support quick access to integrated data and location-based services, paves indeed the way for innovative public sector governance models - also called mobile governance or m-governance - based on the use of mobile technology in support of public services and information delivery.

The report highlights the critical potential of mobile technologies for improved public governance, as well as for economic and social progress towards the achievement of the internationally agreed development agenda defined in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The in-depth analysis of the prerequisites for m-government, its main benefits and challenges, the value-chain and the key stakeholders, and the checklist of concrete actions intend to sustain policy makers in monitoring and updating their knowledge on m-government, and to draw on its implications for public sector governance, public service delivery, and smarter and more open government.

Whether it is an electronic wallet card linked to a mobile phone in Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, or the Philippines; voting, registration or election monitoring in Morocco, Kenya, Estonia and Ukraine; support for farmers with weather forecast information and market price alerts in Malaysia, Uganda, India and China; or co-ordination of real-time location data for emergency response in Turkey, the United States and France, mobile technologies are enhancing dynamic interactions between citizens and government, creating further opportunities for open and transparent government.

“M-Government: Mobile Technologies for Responsive Governments and Connected Societies” is a unique report as it is the result of the joint-work of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA). Recognising the ubiquity of public good governance principles, and the existence of opportunities and challenges commonly shared by governments worldwide, the three organisations aim to offer a call for action to all member countries to be strategic in moving ahead in implementing m-visions that drive public sector change and strengthen its good governance.

http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/cyb/app/m-gov.html

LCQ7: E-engagement and e-government

Hong Kong (HKSAR) - Following is a question by the Hon Samson Tam and a reply by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Gregory So, at the Legislative Council meeting today (February 8):

Question:

Regarding e-citizen engagement and e-government, will the Government inform this Council:

(a) given that "politics on the Internet" has become a trend, how the authorities, through information and communication technology, make use of tools on the Internet such as social media web sites, etc. to enhance communication with members of the public, in particular young people;

(b) whether it has made reference to the advance experience of overseas or neighbouring cities (e.g. increasing the transparency of governance by means of technologies such as Web 2.0, etc.) to build a more open e-government and e-community which allow more citizen engagement;

(c) given that the Government launched an 18-month pilot scheme in March last year to make available geo-referenced public facilities data and real time traffic data of major routes at the "Data.One" portal, of the utilisation of the service at present; when it will conduct a review; whether it will consider opening up more public sector information for development and use by the market; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

(d) how the authorities will enhance the use of mobile telecommunication channels to improve service quality; of the government services for which mobile versions are available at present, and whether they will consider offering mobile versions for more government services?

Reply:

President,

The reply to the four-part question is as follows:

(a) The Administration communicates with the public through various channels and tools, including traditional media and the Internet.

In view of the growing popularity of online social media, Government departments are actively making use of electronic platforms to communicate with the public. At present, 12 Government departments and 14 Government officials are using social media (including Facebook, Twitter, microblog, Youtube, and blog) to connect with the public. Last year, the Chief Executive's Office conducted five live online question-and-answer sessions through its Facebook Page, enabling dialogue between politically appointed officials and the public on topical issues.



During 2010 and 2011, the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO) organised a number of seminars and workshops for different levels of Government staff to equip them with the skills as well as knowledge on overseas experience for designing and using online platforms to communicate with the public and listen to their views. OGCIO has also developed three Facebook applications, namely, a live video-streaming application, a questionnaire tool and an application for e-leaflet promotions.

(b) In late 2010, OGCIO commissioned a study on the e-engagement initiatives adopted by overseas governments. The report highlighted the key success factors, challenges, and means of measuring the effectiveness of e-engagement initiatives adopted by the governments of USA, UK, Australia and Singapore.

We provided the report to the Panel on Information Technology and Broadcasting of the Legislative Council in September 2011, and have circulated it to Government departments for reference.

(c) Response to the public sector information pilot scheme has been encouraging. The number of downloads of real-time traffic data of main roads has been increasing significantly, with the daily average downloads of traffic snapshot images increasing from 1 900 in April 2011 to 387 000 in December 2011. The daily downloads of the traffic speed map, journey time indicator and special traffic news also each averaged from 8 000 to 16 000.

Besides, at least nine mobile applications using these real-time traffic data are now available, most of which can be downloaded free of charge. As geo-referenced public facilities data are static information, frequent downloading is unnecessary. There are on average over 300 downloads every month.

The pilot scheme will be completed in September this year. We are now reviewing the effectiveness of the scheme, and will consider the way forward in the light of its outcome.

(d) Riding on the rising popularity of mobile devices, Government departments are making wider use of this channel to deliver public services. Up to early February 2012, Government departments have launched a total of 26 mobile applications and 28 mobile websites (details at Annex).

The Government will continue to develop more mobile services to enhance access to public services and information in line with technology advancement and the public's aspirations and needs.

http://7thspace.com/headlines/405283/lcq7_e_engagement_and_e_government.html

Qatar: New application to enhance e-government accessibility

A new mobile application will be released by the government soon that will cover, at first, the basic interactions with the government, and will eventually include all ‘e-government’ services including those currently provided through Hukoomi and the Ministry of Interior’s Metrash, according to an ictQatar official.
ictQatar services delivery manager Mohannad Omar Naim said that new self-service terminals are also to be installed to support these initiatives, providing greater access to government services.
He believes that people need mobility, need to trust their government and need to be included in decisions through social network interaction. People also need to have access to all their government services through a single log-on access point with only one username. For this vision to become reality, the government should provide accessibility, broadband, and other critical infrastructure.
The idea of eGovernment in Qatar started in 2001 with 11 online services, mainly based around residence permits for individuals and businesses. Naim said that people resisted at first, with the government having to beg companies to use their online services. Now, online systems have become so prevalent that companies and residents are now recommending services to be added. eGovernment is now in a “transformation phase” working towards a new “digital society” with “eparticipation”.
Dr Alistair Erskine, chief of Medical Informatics at the Sidra Medical and Research Centre, said that “Qatar does not have a very well developed primary care network. There are significant efforts to do so, but those efforts will take time and they will take a change in the way the population thinks about primary care.”
Erskine said that just as people can now leapfrog credit card payments and go directly to mobile payments, soon patients will be able to skip elements of primary care and bring care directly into the home.
Monitoring tools, disease surveillance, weight and other monitoring devices, as well as information portals for patients to learn about and understand their condition are some of the elements that can transform healthcare in Qatar. Fibre network upgrades to the country’s broadband systems will play an important role in implementing these kinds of healthcare services.
According to Erskine, Qatar’s vision for health care calls for a dramatic transformation in the coming years, not just in terms of personalised health care but also in overall health systems management.
Flu outbreaks, for example, will be identified before health care providers even report cases, simply by the symptoms being looked up on Google by Internet users.
Patients will have better monitoring and interaction from health care providers directly from the home, supported by the “decentralisation and democratisation of health information”.
“People will be able to get a chip with their entire genome in less than 24 hours, for less than QR3,600,” Erskine explained.
He said that this breakthrough will allow healthcare professionals to identify patterns in recessive genes amongst the population that were previously unrecognised.
Gamification, or making these services more entertaining and engaging, will also improve their success as people will be more likely to use them consistently. Mobile apps are also crucial in helping those with disabilities which is crucial because, as David Banes, CEO of Qatar Assistive Technology Centre (Mada) points out, 70% of people will acquire some disability in their working life.
A number of inexpensive apps are transforming the lives of the visually and hearing impaired, whether it is through GPS navigation tools, access to books using kindle or other reading assistants, communication tools for the deaf or product recognition software for the blind. Banes said that one way the public can help is by donating their second hand iphones and smartphones to Mada, who will provide them as living-assistance tools for those who need them.

http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=484760&version=1&template_id=36&parent_id=16

Zimbabwe: E-governance for effective service delivery

By Zibusiso Dube

Access to information has a very important role to play in ensuring the health of a democracy. Firstly, it ensures that citizens make responsible informed choices rather than acting out of ignorance or misinformation. Secondly, information serves a ‘checking function’ by ensuring that elected representatives uphold their oaths of office and carry out the wishes of those who elected them. By extension therefore, access to information and the media can play a role in the improvement of service delivery, in the respect of human rights, and in the recognition of the needs of the people in policy formulation and governance. Access to information and the media is thus an important part of development.

In Zimbabwe however, citizens do not have access to adequate information to base decisions on and are therefore not empowered to take charge of their destinies by participating in the critical discourses shaping policy formulation, service delivery principles and governance priorities. Expansion in the use of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) has however provided an opportunity for the government to increase the amount of information Zimbabweans have access to and to generate discourse between the public and those who govern them.

One of the greatest challenges that Zimbabwe faces in governance is the lack of engagement and communication between holders of public office and their constituents. This is fundamentally a problem for two reasons. Firstly there is lack of transparency and accountability in the operations of public officials meaning that they have the leeway to prioritize their own interests at the expense of those of the citizens. Secondly, lack of engagement leads to the formulation of policies, and the implementation of projects that may not augur well with citizens and are thus rejected leading to wastage of taxpayers’ money and stunted developmental growth. Unfortunately, the culture in Zimbabwe has never been one for affording citizens access to information or promotion of engagement, accountability and transparency.

Instead, operations of holders of public office are a mystery to the public, with regular allegations of corruption emerging. The media are also viewed with suspicion, with officials wary of them and reluctant to give interviews. Worse still, the country’s laws, such as the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA), certain sections the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act, the contempt of court law, defamation law, the Official Secrets Act (OSA) and the Broadcasting Services Act (BSA) make operating in the country difficult for media practitioners. In addition to these laws, journalists normally face harassment by state security agents and get arrested for merely doing their jobs. Due to this journalists engage in self – censorship, in the process denying people relevant information to base decisions on. On the other hand, Zimbabwe’s unstable economy has resulted in a huge digital divide with large sections of the population unable to purchase newspapers or access other forms of information. Zimbabweans therefore lack adequate information on critical issues, thus citizen agency and developmental democracy remain elusive.

The rise in the use of the internet and other New Information Communication Technologies (NICTs) in the country in the past year has provided an opportunity for increasing conversation between governors and the governed. Mobile penetration in Zimbabwe now stands at approximately 65 percent, while use of the internet has also increased considerably following rapid expansion in the sector since 2009, coupled with the introduction of third generation internet technology. In urban areas, it is estimated that every household has at least four mobile phones. In addition, use of smart phones, whose functions include internet, multi-media services and cameras has increased, especially among the youth. This is providing new avenues for communication between holders of public office and the public.

The global community recognises the importance of ICTs in the maintenance of democracy and in sustainable development. In September 2003, representatives of countries from all across the globe met in Geneva for the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) where the WSIS declaration of principles was passed. The summit declared a “desire and commitment to build a people-centred, inclusive and development-oriented Information Society, where everyone can create, access, utilize and share information and knowledge, enabling individuals, communities and peoples to achieve their full potential in promoting their sustainable development and improving their quality of life, premised on the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and respecting fully and upholding the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.” A commitment was also made to use ICTs to contribute to the attainment of the Millennium Developmental Goals (MDGs), namely the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger; achievement of universal primary education; promotion of gender equality and empowerment of women; reduction of child mortality; improvement of maternal health; to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases; ensuring environmental sustainability; and development of global partnerships for development for the attainment of a more peaceful, just and prosperous world.

The World Bank defines e-governance as the “government owned or operated systems of information and communication technologies that transform relations with citizens, the private sector and/or other government agencies so as to promote citizens empowerment, improve service delivery, strengthen accountability, increase transparency, or improve government efficiency.” E-governance is also defined as “public sector’s use of the most innovative information and communications technologies, like the internet, to deliver to all citizens improved services, reliable information and greater knowledge in order to facilitate access to the governing process and encourage deeper citizen participation. E – governance therefore notes that ICTs can be used to increase communication and dialogue between public officials and residents, and therefore increase citizen agency.

The onus is on the government and local authorities to use e-governance concepts as a means to increase communication between themselves and the public in order to increase accountability and transparency in their operations. Admittedly, e-governance is a broad concept, and requires investments in capacity building not only for holders of public office, but for citizens as well. Using websites, blogs, Facebook and Twitter for example, government departments, ministries, councillors and departments in local authorities could increase the amount of information the public has on government projects, activities and policies. The interactive nature of these communication tools would also provide the public with platforms to inform public officials of their needs and priorities. While e-governance is a broad concept including the computerisation of government transactions and communications among government departments, it is the e-democracy part – that concerned with improving engagement, transparency and accountability in governance – that has an immediate appeal. This is not to say other concepts of e-governance should be left out. The government should come up with a holistic e-governance programme in order for Zimbabweans to be able to enjoy the full benefits of the information society. By doing so, the government would be making a commitment to developmental democracy – increasing citizens participation in governance, engagement and citizen agency leading to better service delivery and accountability and transparency in governance.

Zibusiso Dube is the Information Manager at Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association (BPRA).

http://www.zimeye.org/?p=45666

Digital China Creates Smart Jiangsu through Advanced Technology Developing Information Security Platforms in Jiangsu and Yangzhou

Digital China Holdings Limited (“Digital China” or the “Group”; Stock Code: 00861.HK), China’s largest integrated IT services provider, announced that it has won the bid to develop an information security platform for monitoring the e-government portal and major IT systems of the municipal government in Yangzhou. Previously, the Group successfully helped the Jiangsu provincial government set up a similar platform. These achievements mark a new chapter in its implementation of the Sm@rt City strategy in Jiangsu Province.

E-government is rapidly growing in China, imposing greater threats and risks to information security. As a result, governments of various provinces and cities assign the utmost importance to upgrading their information security systems during the informatization process. The Jiangsu provincial government started to establish the information security platform in 2010 and planned to develop similar platforms in 13 cities within the province. Digital China was commissioned to design and execute the project, through which a monitoring network covering the whole province would be created by linking together the provincial government’s platform with those of municipal governments. With advanced technology and extensive experience in Sm@rt City implementation, Digital China successfully launched the provincial government’s platform in April 2011. This platform protected 271 e-government portals in the province (including the Business Recovery Centre of Jiangsu Province, portals of some major provincial government agencies, portals of Wuxi municipal government and e-government portal of the Nanjing municipal government) from a variety of information security problems including disruption, modification, Trojan viruses, domain theft and the protection of sensitive information. The platform substantially enhances the capabilities of the provincial government to monitor, alert and manage potential security threats that may occur in its e-government portal and major IT systems. The project passed the preliminary test in November 2011. It is currently the largest, most intensive and effective regional security platform for e-government portals in China.

Recently, Digital China won another bid to develop the information security platform for monitoring the e-government portal and major IT systems of the municipal government of Yangzhou. Leveraging its advanced technology, the Group helped the government to develop a comprehensive security management and monitoring system to protect about 200 e-government portals and the government’s major IT systems from security threats before, during and after potential problems occurred. Moreover, the security levels can be temporarily raised when important events occur or during specific periods, thus providing constant security monitoring during client-specified periods.

Mr. Lin Yang, the CEO of Digital China, commented, “The smooth development of the information security platforms in Jiangsu Province and Yangzhou lays a solid foundation for the interaction between both platforms. It establishes a good model for other provincial and municipal governments to follow. We formulated the Sm@rt City strategy in 2010 to drive our business transformation by shifting towards a ‘customer-focused and service-oriented’ approach. This transformation has enabled us to capture opportunities arising from the urbanization and informatization process in China and the results continue to be promising. We have successfully carried out the Sm@rt City strategy throughout the country. To date, we have forged preliminary agreements for strategic cooperation with major cities including Nanjing, Wuhan, Shenzhen and Yangzhou, making us the leading expert in Sm@rt City solution with the highest number of installations.”

http://www.todayir.com/e/ownnews_showdetails.php?itemid=89203

Dubai eGovernment signs MoU with EIDA

By Georgina Enzer

Dubai eGovernment has signed an MoU with the Emirates Identity Authority (EIDA). Under the terms of the agreement, Dubai eGovernment will introduce central applications that will integrate EIDA online identity applications with the Population Register and link EIDA to all other Dubai.

 

EIDA will provide the necessary technological applications to read the data stored in Emirates ID cards, as well as the infrastructure for the digital identity applications and unified identity management in order to verify the identity of clients.

 

EIDA also plans to partner with Dubai eGovernment to develop the concept and general framework for the digital ID project at the Dubai Government level.

 

"The signing of this agreement is in line with our commitment to actively contribute to the objectives of government integration and the electronic transformation of government systems across Dubai. These aim to realise the vision and directives of HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. We support the digital identity project in view of its positive impact on Dubai's electronic transformation. We are committed, in the framework of our partnership with EIDA, to implement a series of relevant initiatives and joint ventures, including integrating infrastructure for the verification of the identity card and handling this system," said Ahmed Bin Humaidan, director general of Dubai eGovernment.

The agreement was signed by Bin Humaidan, and Dr Ali Mohamed Al Khouri, Emirates ID Director General, at the Dubai eGovernment headquarters at HH Dubai Ruler's Court.

 

"This strategic partnership reflects our belief in the use of advanced technologies in improving government performance, considering that the population register and ID card project is part of the UAE's strategy to become one of the five best governments in the world," said Al Khouri.

 

 Al Khouri added that the agreement would be beneficial in implementing the strategic objectives of government entities and unifying their efforts at upgrading customer service.

http://www.itp.net/587804-dubai-egovernment-signs-mou-with-eida

E-gov satisfaction at high levels, report says

Customer satisfaction with e-government exceeded satisfaction with overall government for the seventh year in a row in 2011, according to a new report from ForeSee research firm.

In addition, another new report from GovDelivery ranked the most popular government information shared online in 2011.

Australia prefers Govt contact via the Internet

Special Minister of State Gary Gray said in a statement yesterday that the Internet constitutes the preferred method of access to government services, backing his statements with the release of a new report in the area.

The report, titled Interacting with Government: Australians’ use and satisfaction with e-Government Services 2011 and available online, concerns Australians’ use of e-government services. It indicates that the Internet, when available as a choice, is the most frequently used channel to get in touch with government.

 

Gray explained in a blog post on the blog of the Australian Government Information Management Office that the government had initiated a series of six surveys in 2005 when only 19 per cent of Australians used the internet for their most recent contact with government. The 2011 study is the sixth and final among the studies, and was commissioned by the Australian Government through AGIMO in the Department of Finance and Deregulation. Gray felt that the 2011 study demonstrated a high overall satisfaction with government online services, while pointing out the need for improvement in convenience, availability and channel features of online services.

Gray specified that satisfaction with government websites continued to be high, and that, since 2009, Australians had expressed significantly increased satisfaction with the way government websites are designed to enable quick service delivery. The report shows that four in five people (82 per cent) use the Internet primarily because of its convenience. Reasons for contacting the government varied from seeking and providing information to receiving and making payments.

According to Gray, 46 per cent of Australians specified their preference for the Internet over other forms of contact. “When the internet is an option, in 2011 nearly half of Australians (47 per cent) used it in their most recent contact with government,” Gray stated. The research also noted significant growth in mobile phone use and use of similar portable devices to access websites, as well as continuing growth in use of social networking sites and text messaging.

Reasons for not using e-government services included availability, access, infrastructure, channel features, awareness, content, convenience, security and privacy concerns. Some people expressed a preference for dealing with a ‘real’ person (17 per cent), while others were not sufficiently familiar with navigating the website (6 per cent).

While Australians in older age groups continued to take up new communication technologies, including e-mail, SMS and social networking sites, those in the over 65 age group indicated their need for better skills and improved access to e-services. With regard to level of government, the Australian Government was the most commonly accessed (49 per cent), while state and territory (23 per cent) and local government (28 per cent) had similar levels of contact.

“People now more than ever expect government to provide its services online wherever possible. The challenge for government is to continue to deliver quality online services and to keep pace with new technologies” Gray said. He expected the opportunities for greater engagement with citizens online to increase thanks to the National Broadband Network’s rollout of high speed broadband and the fast-growing utilisation of novel communications technologies.

http://delimiter.com.au/2012/01/20/australia-prefers-govt-contact-via-the-internet/