[kictanet] E-Government is it a myth or a reality?

Mon Mar 29 16:59:28 EAT 2010

Hi Walu,

While you may be right about the potential for stiff resistance to  
single database/shared services across Govt agencies, one cannot  
downplay the national security implications of the current, disparate,  
"silo-tic" system that pervaded gov'ts acquisition, retention and  
control of esp citizen data.

We need to envision a day when the thug who sprains his ankle while  
playing soccer with his co-thugs will get arrested when he goes for  
treatment at the local clinic, simply because his ID# or biometric  
data trigger a red flag that alerts the local police station and  
displays his past misdemeanours, some of which might have him on a  
"wanted" list.

Regards,

Mblayo

Sent from my iPhone

On Mar 29, 2010, at 3:50 PM, Walubengo J <jwalu at yahoo.com> wrote:

> right on the spot Harry (the Hare ;-)),
>
> infrastructure(cables, comps, networks, s/ware, bandwidth etc) is  
> often the easy part. There's a complex bit we sometimes call Layer8  
> or Peopleware. You cant change the way people think overnite - even  
> if you provided them the pre-requisite policy, legal and other  
> frameworks, one must still fight that inertia (comfort zone) you and  
> i have that makes it difficult to adopt new ways of thinking, working.
>
> for .KE government, the biggest hurdle towards egovernment is really  
> the turf wars I alluded to (Harry Delano, now am interprating),  You  
> will find resistance to building single databases/shared services  
> fought tooth and nail because that means one dept/ministry or agency  
> has to ceed power and assosciated privileges(rent?) to another...
>
> walu.
>
>
> --- On Mon, 3/29/10, Harry Hare <harry at africanedevelopment.org> wrote:
>
> From: Harry Hare <harry at africanedevelopment.org>
> Subject: Re: [kictanet] E-Government is it a myth or a reality?
> To: jwalu at yahoo.com
> Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
> Date: Monday, March 29, 2010, 11:26 AM
>
> Hello Barrack,
>
> I see and hear your concerns, however, this animal called e- 
> Government can
> be very complex and allow me to share some little knowledge I have  
> after
> more than 10 years of e-Gov consulting. Warning: This will be a bit  
> long.
>
> First and fore most we have to understand that e-Gov is delivery of  
> public
> services through the use of ICT infrastructure. This means e-Gov is  
> *not*
> ICT infrastructure but part of the delivery and facilitation  
> mechanism. If
> we agree on this, then the networks that you refer to (I think this  
> is the
> Government Core Network (GCN)) has set the stage for e-Gov service  
> delivery
> but it is not a service as-is.
>
> This means there is a another level that needs to be worked on, and  
> that is
> the services portfolio. This has already started albeit in a very
> uncoordinated manner. KRA seems to be leading the fray - PIN, VAT
> application, Online tax returns etc. Due to poor or lack of  
> coordination,
> each Ministry seems to be working on their own programmes and  
> projects (I
> have talked about this before) and I can tell you this does not  
> bring the
> benefits of e-Gov - efficiency, accuracy and cost savings.
>
> A case in point is the myriad of databases across government agencies.
> Almost each ministry *owns* its own database with a lot of redundant
> information that each ministry keeps on collecting from you. Under the
> shared services model, application and data re-use can be made  
> possible.
> Where Govt can shared core applications and databases. You will be  
> surprised
> the amount of errors that are introduced to records every time an  
> new form
> is filled. So just reducing the number of times you fill a form at  
> each
> ministry greatly improves the accuracy of Govt records. So, shared  
> services
> model is best practice in e-Gov.
>
> Now, about strategies and strategy meetings. E-Gov is a change  
> process. Its
> about change, changing the way people work, changing the processes and
> re-engineering these process to be supported by an ICT infrastructure.
> Change at any level is not easy and at government level is  
> unthinkable!
>
> Let me illustrate. All e-Gov services have to be backed by law and  
> there are
> legal requirements for every government service you receive. Some  
> laws have
> come into effect that support the roll out of e-Gov services but  
> many are
> yet to be enacted. Consider the issue of contracts. When is a contract
> valid? In most cases there are specific requirements of form  
> designed to
> protect interests or persons. So you see that contracts may in some  
> cases be
> considered valid only when executed in their physical form. That's  
> why you
> have to make a physical application and sign it when applying for your
> passport. So, for you to apply for the same passport online, some  
> laws have
> to be amended to allow for such provisions.
>
>
> The UN or InfoDev, not sure which one, identified 5 e-Gov maturity  
> levels
> from basic online presence to what they refer to a Connected  
> Government. All
> these stages are incremental and have increased benefits to the  
> citizens as
> you move up the ladder. Connected Government is ideal level and very  
> few
> countries globally are there yet. One of them is Canada. We are  
> possibly at
> the second level where we have basic transactional capabilities - can
> download a form, can file tax returns online, can query a database  
> to check
> the status of your passport application etc.
>
> Now, to move to the next level, we need to plan and put strategies  
> in place.
> Evaluate what we have done, where we are at, revisit our priorities  
> and set
> new goals. This is a that you will see over and over again. So e-Gov  
> is not
> something you switch on, its a process that builds on existing blocks
> incrementally.
>
> Whether we use these strategies we develop and review is a totally  
> different
> thing. But its critical to plan and strategise. As they say, failure  
> to plan
> is planning to fail.
>
> My apologies for such a long post, but I felt obliged because e-Gov  
> is a
> subject that is very close to my heart and I hope this helps.  
> Corrections
> and additions are all welcome
>
> I suspect this is worth a bob, ama walu?
>
> Kindest regards
> Harry
>
>
>
>
>
> On 3/27/10 7:43 PM, "Barrack Otieno" <otieno.barrack at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Listers,
> >
> > I have been following discussions on this list that seem to be
> > touching on the above mentioned subject. We seem to be spending  
> large
> > sums on meetings  strategizing and restrategizing however are we
> > really making any headway?  at this point in time we are still
> > required to "fill in some forms" whenever we seek government  
> services
> > is this e-government? we are now talking about shared services i
> > thought e-government implemented a project that networked most
> > government offices, however you have to travel physically to offices
> > to get services, at times we confuse the public with ICT jargon what
> > the public needs is efficiency and effectiveness in service  
> provision.
> > ICT4D on the other hand has been infiltrated by commercial  
> interests,
> > i wonder what should prevail when "commercial" and "public"  
> interests
> > meet, probably we should spend more money on change management,
> > capacity building and awareness campaigns as opposed to this  
> "strategy
> > meetings" which will only lead to analysis paralysis
> >
> > My thoughts
>
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