FUNDAMENTALS OF THE UN E-GOVERNMENT SURVEYworkspace.unpan.org/sites/Internet/Documents/Online...

FUNDAMENTALS OF THE UN E-GOVERNMENT SURVEY

Course Description

This course provides an introduction to the fundamentals of the United Nations E-Government Survey. In particular, it focuses on what the Survey is; who produces it, how it is designed and for what purposes.

Modules

• Module 1. Introduction to the UN E-Government Survey

• Module 2. Components of the United Nations e-government development index (EGDI)

• Module 3. Trends in e-Government

Acknowledgements

The online training course on the Fundamentals of the UN E-Government Survey was prepared by the e-Government Branch (EGB) of the Division for Public Administration and Development Management (DPADM) at the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA).

The work was completed under the overall guidance of Mr. Vincenzo Aquaro, Chief of EGB and the training course was coordinated by Ms. Adriana Alberti, Senior Governance and Public Administration Officer at EGB. The following team members contributed to the online training: Ms. Anni Haataja, Associate Governance and Public Administration Officer at EGB was responsible for Module 1 with the assistance of Ms. Tereza Skopalikova, intern at EGB; Mr. Elie Hobeika of EGB was responsible for Module 2 and Ms. Oksana Yarashuk, Programme Assistant in EGB was responsible for Module 3. Mr. Dennis Anderson, Professor at St. Francis College, USA, provided additional inputs. The technical platform was managed by Ms. Yarashuk together with Ms. Candace Hosang Charbonne from the UNPAN Management Unit in DPADM.

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Course Introduction

Welcome to the UNPAN course:

Fundamentals of the UN E-Government Survey In this course you will learn about:

Module 1. Introduction to the UN E-Government Survey

Module 2. Components of the United Nations e-government development index

Module 3. Trends in e-Government

Module 1 Introduction to the UN E-Government Survey

Module 1 Introduction to the UN E-Government Survey

By the end of this module you will be able to: A. Define e-government and its benefits

B. Describe what the UN E-Government Survey is

C. Understand how the e-government development index measures e-government development

D. Review the objectives of the UN E-Government Survey

E. Learn about who its users are

F. Know when, where and by whom the UN E-Government Survey is carried out

Module 1/Slide 1

A. What is e-Government?

Introduction Governments are faced with increasingly complex challenges and are expected to innovate how they operate and utilize their resources, how they provide services and engage citizens in policy-making decisions. E-government can be the change agent to meet these challenges through online services, and by making governments more effective, efficient, transparent, accountable and inclusive. “Governments must increasingly begin to rethink in terms of e-government – and e-governance – placing greater emphasis on institutional linkages between and among the tiered government structures in a bid to create synergy for inclusive sustainable development. An important aspect of this approach is to widen the scope of e-government for a transformative role of the government towards cohesive, coordinated, and integrated processes and institutions through which such sustainable development takes place.” UN E-Government Survey 2012

Module 1/Slide 2

A. What is e-Government?

E-government is the application of ICT in government operations, achieving public ends by digital means.

“The underlying principle of e-government, supported by an effective e-governance institutional framework, is to improve the internal workings of the public sector by reducing financial costs and transaction times so as to better integrate work flows and processes and enable effective resource utilization across the various public sector agencies aiming for sustainable solutions.”

UN E-Government Survey 2012

Module 1/Slide 3

E-government & Innovation

for Sustainable Development

Economic growth, social inclusion and

environmental protection

Greater efficiency &

effectiveness

Better access and quality of

services

Help Governments

go green

Increase Transparency through open

data and Accountability

Enhance citizen

participation

How can e-Government be an Enabler of Sustainable Development?

Module 1/Slide 4

B. What is the UN E-Government Survey?

• The UN E-Government Survey is the only report in the world that assesses the e-government development status of the 193 UN Member States.

• Serves as a tool for decision-makers to identify their areas of strength and

challenges in e-government and to guide e-government policies and strategies.

• Provides a systematic assessment of the use of ICT to transform and

reform the public sector by enhancing efficiency, effectiveness, transparency, accountability, access to public services and citizen participation.

• The Survey is a valuable tool for the post-2015 sustainable development

agenda. • Click here for a video on the UN E-Government Survey.

Module 1/Slide 5

C. How does the Survey measure e-government development?

The UN E-Government Survey measures e-government development in all 193 UN Member States through the e-government development index (EGDI) (See Module 2 for more in-depth information). The EGDI measures e-government development in a structured manner, consisting of three components weighted in equal manner: 1. Online Service Index: Measures the online presence of government and

the services provided to citizens online.

2. Telecommunication Infrastructure Index: Measures through several indicators the infrastructure through which citizens can have access to the government online services.

3. Human Capital Index: Measures the educational base of citizens that will allow them to access the government services online.

Module 1/Slide 6

D. What is the purpose of the Survey?

The ultimate goal of the Survey is to provide incentives for capacity-building and to provide policy guidance and serve as in impartial reference on how to utilize ICTs to transform governments and to enable sustainable development. The e-government development ranking of the 193 Member States contained in the Survey receives much attention, as is the case with any rankings, which leads to both positive and unintended consequences.

Module 1/Slide 7

It shares knowledge and good practices from around the world aiding countries in all regions to make informed e-government policy-decisions.

It serves as an incentive for governments to build their capacities and promote e-government development within their countries.

It serves as a barometer of e-government trends and indicates the direction of e-government development.

It demonstrates that global progress in e-government development through the record of findings over the past 10 years.

It helps draw attention from the media to issues of e-government development and institutions working with them.

What are the positive uses of the Survey?

Module 1/Slide 8

When it is not realized that the ranking is a comparative tool of relative value, leading to misinterpretation of results. For example, even if a country continues to have a good e-government performance but other countries perform better, the ranking of that country may go down.

When the survey is seen purely from a competitive perspective, countries that rank lower might misinterpret the ranking as a criticism of their performance.

Misinterpretations regarding the ranking might happen, as for example:

What can the misinterpretations of the Survey be?

Module 1/Slide 9

E. Who are the users of the Survey?

Governments Intergovernmental institutions International and regional organizations Academia, research centers and schools of public administration Private sector Civil Society Organizations Citizens Use the Survey as a benchmark tool to measure e-government development and for capacity development, policy recommendations and good practices around the world.

Module 1/Slide 10

Examples of Survey users

Module 1/Slide 11

The World Bank

World Economic Forum

European Commission

Electronic Journal of e-Government

OECD

International Telecommunication Union

The Economist

United Nations University

MDG Gap Task Force Report

• The Survey is produced by the Division for Public Administration

and Development Management (DPADM) of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA).

• DPADM assists UN Member States in fostering efficient, effective, transparent, accountable, clean and citizen-centered public governance, administration and services through innovation and technology to achieve the internationally agreed development goals including the MDGs.

Who?

F. Who, when, and where is the UN E-Government Survey carried out?

Module 1/Slide 12

Module 1/Slide 13

• The Division for Public Administration and Development Management (DPADM) of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) publishes the UN E-Government Survey every two years.

• The Survey began in earnest in 2003 with a pilot in 2001. • The Survey is prepared by a DPADM Team based at the UN

Headquarters in New York, USA, with the support of researchers around the world. Over 95 researchers took part in the 2014 Survey.

• The DPADM Survey Team won the 2013 UN ‘Online Volunteering

Award’ for its collaboration with researchers around the world. • The 2012 edition was downloaded more than 600,000 times between

March and November 2012 and the latest reports have consistently ranked among the top 10 downloaded publications of DESA.

When and where is the Survey produced?

Questions

1. What is e-government? A. Use of ICTs by governments

B. Use of ICTs by governments to achieve public ends

C. Providing computers to public servants

D. Providing computers to citizens

2. What are the benefits of e-government (all applicable)?: A. More transparency through open government data

B. Better and more accessible services

C. Search engines are more widely available

D. Enhanced citizen participation

2. Which major challenges e-government can help to address (all applicable)?: A. Lack of citizens’ trust in their governments by making governments more open

B. Financial crisis by cutting costs

C. Climate change by ‘going green’

D. Lack of funding for development cooperation by creating online donations

3. How can e-government development be measured? A. By looking at the government websites

B. By looking at the number of internet connections in a country

C. By looking at the number of people who are computer literate

D. By a holistic examination of the country’s online presence, telecommunication infrastructure and human development

Module 1/Slide 14

Questions

4. The UN E-Government Survey is the flagship publication of: A. International Telecommunication Union

B. United Nations Development Programme

C. United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs

D. World Bank

5. What does the UN E-Government Survey assess?: A. The number of government websites in the world

B. The e-government development status of all the UN Member States

C. The number of people using online public services in each UN Member State

D. The number of government officials using internet in their daily work

6. What are the benefits of the UN E-Government Survey (all applicable)?: A. Help draw attention from the media on e-government issues

B. Serves as a barometer of e-government trends

C. Offers criticism to governments that do not rank well

D. Helps governments make informed e-government policy decisions

7. What does the UN E-Government Survey measure?: A. E-government development in developed countries

B. E-government development in developing countries

C. E-government development in all UN Member States

D. E-government development in all countries of the world

Module 1/Slide 15

Want to know more?

If you want to know more on e-government and the Survey, please visit:

UN E-Government Development Database

www.unpan.un.org/egovkb/

UN Public Administration Network

www.unpan.un.org

Module 1/Slide 16

Congratulations!

You have reached the end of this module.

You will now be able to: A. Define e-government and its benefits

B. Describe what the UN E-Government Survey is

C. Understand how the e-government development index measures e-government development

D. Review the objectives of the UN E-Government Survey

E. Learn about who its users are

F. Know when, where and by whom is the UN E-Government Survey carried out

Module 1/Slide 17