Transcript UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

What and Whose eGovernment We Want?
An End-User’s Dimension of e-Services
and Capacity Building in Central Eastern
Europe: Lessons & Questions
WITFOR – 2005
Gaborone, Botswana, 31 Aug – 2 Sep 2005
Yuri Misnikov
Regional ICT-for-Development Regional Advisor
Democratic Governance Programme
UNDP Regional Centre (Europe & CIS)
Bratislava, Slovakia
Abstract
This presentation reviews the latest egovernment developments in Central
Eastern Europe from the perspective of
added value for end-users. It argues
that e-government initiatives should be
anchored into wider ICT-enabled change
of public sector management and
service delivery, coupled with nurturing
new locally available competencies and
opportunities through e-governance
teaching.
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“Good progress but more
challenges ahead…”

Concluded the Final eEurope+ Progress Report
presented at the European Ministerial Conference
in February 2004 in Budapest outlining the
advancements made by the former Acceding and
current Candidate Countries (ACC) in the overall
implementation of the eEurope+ Action Plan.

eEurope+ Action Plan – was an instrument of
helping ACC to implement eEurope 2005 Action
Plan – a strategy for EU to become the world’s
most competitive economy based on knowledge
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Facts & statistics (1)
Most EU directives in support of
Information Society services being
either under implementation or at the
stage of draft laws.
 Number of Internet users grew during
2001-2003 by 60% -- up to 15%.
 Still far less that EU average of 40%.

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Facts & statistics (2)
80% use Internet for simple information
search
 75% -- for communication purposes
 40% -- for downloading games/music
 32% -- for visiting chat rooms and
discussion forums
 23% -- for obtaining banking services,
 3% for financial services
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
Facts & statistics (3)

e-Banking
– as low as 5-10%
– Estonia -- 95% of bank transactions are conducted
via electronic channels

Looking for goods and services
– healthy 51%
– BUT actual online purchasing 12% and less

e-Business
– 70% of companies with Internet connection
– BUT only 39% were present on the Web
– BUT less than one-tenth received orders online
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Facts & statistics (4)

e-Services to citizens
– Grew rapidly from 1% to 20% of fully
transactional online
– 17% interacted online with public authorities
to obtain, e.g., official forms
– BUT only 9% returned these forms back to the
government
– Only 16% of enterprises used the Internet to
make social contribution for employees
– Only 11% to handle VAT declaration and
notification.

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Facts & statistics (5)

Who are non-users?
– Over 50% of all Internet non-users in Estonia don’t
relate their lives to the Internet
– 27% are “Passive People” and 28% -- Blue Collars”
who don’t see any reason to use the Internet and
see no benefits in it (studies by AS Emor and
PRAXIS Center for Policy Studies (2002).
– 2/3 of all non-users cannot specify any areas that
could be of any use for them
– 1/3 don’t know what the Internet is
– 1/4 don’t know how to use a computer
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Questions ???
 What
public sector policy
makers and e-governance
practitioners should make of
these figures?
 How to motivate people to
adapt technology and use
benefits of the information
society?
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Possible answers (1)

From Estonia:
– Putting more emphasis on social and economic
impacts of ICT development rather than on
measuring and encouraging technology advances
– ‘Blue Collars’ group should be the main target
– Internet needs to be transformed into a channel
for daily errands, and a ‘broader understanding of
the “Internet for everyone” needs to be created
among the ”Passive People” group.
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Possible answers (2)

From Estonia:
– Use web-technology to build state-level
information systems to replace traditional user
interface technologies to allow for new possibilities
for the unification and integration of e-services.
– Move from back-office centred developments to
front-office or unified user interface ones.
– Place workplace software of information systems
on central servers instead of on workplace
computers to enable each Internet-connected
computer to serve as a terminal for many
information systems.
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Possible answers (3)

From Estonia:
– Move away from data collection to services (in
development of databases)
– Move away from institution-based approach to
inter-institutional one.
– Move away from infrastructure development to
that of information systems
– Operationalize Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) in
synergy with ID cards for new opportunities for
unified identification of users of e-services and for
the use of digital signatures.
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Possible answers (4)

From EU Report:
– URGENTLY stimulate the deployment of
interactive media-rich content to drive the
broadband access to the Internet
– Ensure access to public sector information for a
faster adoption of new ways of communication
with the state
– Invest more by regional and local governments in
Public Internet Access Points (PIAP), especially
school-based to bring ICTs closer to people
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Possible answers (5)

From EU:
– Continue implementation of e-government
initiatives beyond simple provision of information
and towards fully transactional services focused on
the needs of citizens and businesses
– Support innovative public-private partnerships to
promote investment in and use of ICTs in small
and medium enterprises.
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Possible answers (6)

From EU:
– Make available a rich and highly developed
set of services that will motivate adoption
by the public
– Involve sufficiently large user population
that will motivate the business sector to
invest in the provision of ICT-enabled
services
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IT Training Strategy for
Estonian Public Sector



First seminars on IT public sector
applications for Ministers and Heads of
Offices in 1992-1993
Systematic training almost non-existent
before 1995
Push from the Department of State
Information Systems - government body
responsible for coordination of IT in public
sector in 1998-1999 as a remedy for
problems:
– in budgeting of IT expenses
– in public procurement of IT
– in setting the goals for IT in public sector
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Main training focus:
IT management in Public Sector



Main modules, each 2-3 days long:
– IT strategic management
– IT project management
– System Analysis tools and methods
– Technology (from the managers viewpoint)
– Process analysis and re-engineering
– Telecommunication
Target group: IT managers, IT department
heads in ministries
Scale: During 1999 – 2001 almost all 200 IT
managers (decision makers) in public sector
trained
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International cooperation



Co-financed by Estonian
Government, Baltic Sea IT Fund
(Swedish Foreign-Aid Fund) and
private IT company Baltic Computer
Systems (BCS) - first PPP!
Implementation - joint effort of
Swedish Association of IT,
Department of State Information
Systems and BCS
First training in May 1999
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Training Results
Change in thinking of general
managers and IT managers
 Critical mass! Small-scale projectbased approach!
 Changes in budgeting and goalsetting procedures in public sector
 Importance of training was
recognised!

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Regional context: Need for
Capacity Development

BASELINE: Internationally agreed principles
of building the information society (WSIS
Bucharest process, especially Pan European
Regional WSIS Conference in 2002):
– Develop human capacity though education and
training
– Promote e-Government – more efficient and
more accountable
– Develop national e-Strategies by benefiting from
existing knowledge and experience on best
practices and learning from one another
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E-Governance context: Need
for Good Governance (1)


Governance practices – the key to a successful
Information Society for all
– How the society is organized and governed (public
administration, civil services, self-governance,
corporate governance, access to information and
justice, role of parliaments…)
Good Governance – the key to democratic practices
– Whether people have opportunity and means to
participate in decision-making
– Whether economic development is equitable and its
fruits are available for all
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E-Governance context: Need
for Good Governance (2)

e-Governance is part of the wider Good
Governance concept
– But not neutral to various governance
practices and methods while different
governance settings not neutral to harnessing
ICT potential
– With focus on improving governance
practices by employing ICT means
– Includes Government-citizen communication,
– Is about public participation and
empowerment
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Region’s successes


EU eEurope and eEurope+ 2005 Action Plans
– Has been revised and will be replaced by
i2010 initiative
Electronic South East Europe (Western Balkans)
– eSEEurope Agenda Initiative
– To emulate eEurope+ for EU accession and
candidate countries
– All six participating members states will have
by end 2005 have their national e-strategies
formally adopted as a result of common
regional approach
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– Estonia, Hungary, Slovenia, Czech Republic
Region’s problems (1)


Lack of policies
– In formulation and implementation of national estrategies
– In establishing agencies/institutions in charge of the
information society
– In benchmarking of progress in building the
information society
– In access to public information
There are successful examples
– eEurope and eEurope+
– Electronic South East Europe (eSEEurope Agenda)
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Region’s problems (2)



Lack of real strong commitment to make the
information society a development priority of
– Governments and legislatures
– Political elites – information society is not on the
agenda of major political party in the region
– General public
Lack of effective and replicable public-private
partnership models and strategies
– As a tool for gaining tangible economic benefits
from the use of ICTs
Lack of transparent governance practices in
telecom sector (limited public access, high prices,
little investment – telecom sector can be a powerful
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engine of economic growth)
UNDP Strategy for Europe
and the CIS

In partnerships with all other interested partners
– Build capacity through e-governance training, policy
advice, networking and knowledge transfer to
facilitate change
– Help shape up national and common regional policies
and strategies
– Develop guidelines for formulation, implementation
and benchmarking of information society, including
setting up cabinet-level bodies in charge of
information society
– Promote access to ICT at the grassroots level through
community-based public access as part of local
sustainable development strategies
– Promote public-private partnerships and investment
– Promote virtual activism though digital and online
content management and professional networking 26
Response: e-Governance
Academy - eGA



WHY: Promote e-governance as e-democracy tool
to support democratic governance practices and
open information society in the former Soviet
Union and South Eastern Europe
WHAT: Training services, research and networking
in e-governance drawing on Estonian experience
and in future other EU accession countries
HOW: Transfer of knowledge through training,
research, annual conference, as well as through
listservs.
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What is eGA (1)

Venue:
– Tallinn, Estonia

Partners:
– UNDP, OSI, Government of Estonia (MFA,
Ministry of Economy and Finance)

Clients:
– Public sector policy makers and ICT
specialists in Europe and the SEE
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What is eGA (2)
 Accomplishments:
– Over 400 participants trained from over
20 countries in the CIS and SEE
– Dozens consultancy missions
– Listserv and mailing lists
– Projects in e-Transparency and Anticorruption
– Workshops on e-Democracy and iLaws
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Expected Impacts
Changed attitudes and minds among
public officials and their counterparts
 Improved regional exchanges and
networking
 Improved opportunities for common
regional and sub-regional policies
 Generation and diffusion of new
knowledge

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What is eGA Training
Programme (1)

A standard policy and practice five-day
training course:
– Day 1: Introduction + ICT & Public Sector:
Orientation, Expectations, Formation of ICT
Policy, Legal framework for ICT regulation
– Day 2: ICT situation in Estonia ICT: Education,
Role of the Third Sector, ICT Penetration and
Access, Telecom situation, Private Initiatives
– Day 3: ICT Management in Theory and Practice:
Development of e-strategies in Public and Private
Sector, E-citizen, Management, Coordination and
Auditing of Public Sector IT Projects, e-Tax
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What is eGA Training
Programme (2)

A standard five-day training course:
– Day 4: ICT in Public Sector E-government
in Estonia in Practice. E-services
technologies Government Session System
Digital Document Management System of
ICT E-government Scorecard
– Day 5: ID–card, Digital Signature,
Coordination International Cooperation,
Workgroup Seminar, Q&A, Evaluation
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Participants’ Priority Topics
(1)

‘Bestsellers’:
– Digital Signature & ID-Cards
– E-Documents and e-Government
– United Service Layer for National/Sectoral
Registers and Databases
– IT Strategies in Private and Public sectors
– Legal Frameworks and Regulation
– National ICT Policy
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Participants’ Priority Topics
(2)

Strong Interest:
– Coordination in Public Sector
– Telecom situation
– ICT penetration
– International cooperation
– Land registration
– ICT private sector and big capital
investment
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Future

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Specialized course on Local e-Governance
Specialized course on Gender and ICT and PPP
More Advisory missions and consultancies
More research and publications
More replication of good practices
Assistance in establishing e-Governance training
curricula in other countries on demand, jointly with
the Network of Public Administraiton Schools and
Institutions in Central Eastern Europe (NISPAcee)
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END
THANK YOU!
Contact details: [email protected]
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