Activity File
Online Introduction to e-Government & Knowledge Map
Using ICT for Public Sector Reform
Summary
E-government initiatives have proliferated in both developed and developing countries in recent years. As developing country policy makers and citizens seek to harness the power of ICT as tools of effective governance, there is an urgent need for a comprehensive overview of "what we know" about e-government initiatives and the conditions for their success, and for practical guidance to policy makers as they seek to develop such iniaitives. Building on infoDev's earlier work on e-Government and the work of many other organizations, this online Introduction to E-Government & Knowledge Map is designed to provide a detailed introduction to the state of knowledge of e-government and concrete and actionable guidance to policy makers on how to implement e-government projects.
Background / Terms of Reference
Policy makers and international donors seeking to implement and support e-government programs in developing countries are faced with an abundance of examples, anecdotes, data, and initiatives, and must make difficult decisions about which lessons to absorb and which examples to adapt from this vast and growing universe of e-government initiatives.
In order to help them better navigate the issues, opportunities and pitfalls, infoDev has commissioned an Introduction to E-Government & Knowledge Map, designed to provide easily-accessible, basic guidance for policy makers and other key stakeholders.
The Knowledge Map is designed to provide an in-depth review and assessment of the resources available on e-government and their adequacy to meet the needs of developing country policy makers and practitioners. Organized by theme, it provides synopses of, and links to, key documents, case studies, data sources, decision tools and other useful reference materials. In particular, it catalogues and evaluates all the existing e-government toolkits and training materials, particularly in light of their relevance to the specific needs and contexts of developing-country users. Finally, it serves to identify key gaps that still need to filled in our knowledge about effective use of ICT for good governance.
The Introduction piece builds on the Knowledge Map by providing practical guidance to policy makers and other key stakeholders on how to design and implement e-government initiatives at the national and local level. It is designed to be useful to a broad range of possible users, with a particular attention to cross-cutting issues and the challenges of cross-agency integration and systematic approaches to e-government. Just as importantly, it is designed to focus not only on the "supply side" of e-government applications but the "demand side" of how the governance priorities and specific circumstances of a range of users can be accomodated in the design and implementation of e-government.
This project is proudly supported and funded by the European Commission.