ELECTRONIC GOVERNANCE AND ELECTRONIC DEMOCRACY: LIVING AND WORKING IN THE CONNECTED WORLD

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

This paper examines four distinct subject matters in regards to government and the social and cultural changes emerging as a result of the growth and impact of new information technologies and the Internet in society. The emphasis of the study is on electronic service delivery programs and the emergence of policy issues arising as a result of governments going online. The paper also provides distinctions between electronic governance and electronic government.

CHAPTER ONE: ELECTRONIC GOVERNANCE IN CONTEXT

This chapter explores the recent history of the growth of new technologies, the development of the Internet since 1969, the impact it has had on organizations, especially governments, and the ways in which government might want to approach the new technologies. It is important to continue to apply the essential principles of public administration while realizing that new technologies have the potential to change the basic nature of governments. Examples are given to support the theoretical thesis.

CHAPTER TWO: ELECTRONIC GOVERNANCE (LEADING TO GOOD GOVERNMENT)

Significant distinctions are made between e-government, e-governance, e-democracy and e-business (the latter referring to the dealings with other governments online). The chapter also outlines a number of different IT projects around the world, including Singapore and Mauritius, and comparisons to other countries around the globe. An assessment is made of the different types of mechanisms and programs used for government programs and electronic service delivery, in a variety of countries in the Commonwealth. This chapter was written by Rogers Okot-Uma, Chief Program Officer, the Management and Services Division, the Commonwealth Secretariat, London, UK.

CHAPTER THREE: DEVELOPMENTS IN CANADA, UK AND US - A COMPARISON

This section examines and compares IT developments in government programs, electronic service delivery mechanisms and means being developed to engage the citizen in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States. Essentially, governments have made many strides forward in developing electronic services delivery programs for citizens, with some interactive programs in place, whereby the citizen can submit forms back to government or give feedback on a specific subject matter. However, there is still much to do. It is evident there are only minimal attempts, at this stage of development, even among the most technologically proficient countries, to actually engage the citizen in the workings of government.

CHAPTER FOUR: ELECTRONIC DEMOCRACY AND CHANGE:
GOVERNMENT AND THE INTERNET: UNDERSTANDING THE CULTURAL DIVIDES

There are many developments and ongoing changes in electronic democracy. Electronic democracy projects, discussions and actions are taking place on the Internet as citizens and groups work to influence government policy at the public service and legislative level. This is not to say there are millions of people engaged in the political process (and this section does not deal with online voting). However, there are growing numbers of people who see the Internet as a communications tool to engage in some form of discussion. Many governments are attempting to engage the citizens of their countries in the policy and legislative making process, although this is at an early stage.
This is an important element in all "Government Online" programs as citizens living and working in an interactive environment increasingly expect more from all levels of government. This chapter shows how there are differing views as to what constitutes electronic democracy. However, citizens and groups online around the world are using the Internet as an effective communications tool and are becoming the new international citizens, as this is the nature of this new medium. The Internet has also been an organizing tool for individuals and groups to input views or make their message known to governments.
It is clear that the Internet is creating a new culture of online citizens, which makes it distinctly different for governments to respond to because this new culture is in a constant state of flux and change. The expectations of this new culture are high, and people want quick change. However, governments operate in hierarchal systems and are based on principles of public administration, developed in pre-Internet times. This current system of public administration has been evolving for over three centuries. It gives stability to governments but the changes indicate that this new culture will, in time, change the nature of public administration.

CHAPTER FIVE: CURRENT ISSUES IN RELATION TO DEVELOPMENTS IN PRIVACY AND DATA PROTECTION

A.

Privacy and data protection are interchangeable terms. Essentially, with the rise of new technologies privacy is becoming an important issue. Rooted in human rights, many now contend that privacy is an essential human right that must exist if we are to continue to maintain our basic tenets of democracy. Privacy has become an important issue to governments due to increased awareness amongst the public of the sacrosanct nature of their personal information. This chapter discusses the whole privacy and data protection debate internationally, and explores the roots of the concerns individuals have about their privacy. It is a continuing relevant issue as governments go online while internally they are coming to use new technologies in more and more ubiquitous forms. These anxieties are concomitant with the growth of information technologies in our society. The chapter explores the development of privacy and contrasts the approach taken by the European Union, the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the Safe Harbor privacy agreement the United States made with the European Union.

B.

The second part of this section is an opinion piece written by Professor Valerie Steeves, Adjunct Professor of Law, Carleton University, Ottawa , Canada. This has also appeared in the Canadian Bar Association's Law Journal and is reprinted here with their permission. The author looks at the impacts that technologies are having and the ways in which implementations of these technologies are creating diminishing privacy rights and changing the political relationship between governments and the citizen.

CHAPTER SIX: THE ELECTRONIC LIBRARY PROJECT: APRIL 9 AND 10, LONDON, UK

This is a report for a proposed Electronic Library Project, which is an integral part of the international programme being developed by the Commonwealth Centre for Electronic Governance. The objective of this workshop was to examine in depth the feasibility of a proposal to create a distributed electronic library enabling countries of the Commonwealth to share information between and within governments. Large quantities of information pertinent to policy decisions existed within individual national registries, especially in the developed countries, and could provide a rich resource, which would be especially valuable to the developing countries.
Representatives contributing to the event included government officials and advisors from African, Asian, American and European countries. The first session was concerned with exploration of the original concept. A critical look was then taken at the constraints, both tangible and perceived. Although the required technology existed, not all countries had sufficient e-readiness to use it. Limitations were identified in terms of access, affordability and confidentiality. The workshop then proceeded to restructure the proposal to offer a more closely defined project. A small prototype would be developed making available documents relating to a single global issue and used by officials who already had the required knowledge and equipment. This could then be demonstrated and extended into a wider pilot project that, if successful, would lead to gradual roll-out across the Commonwealth and beyond.

CHAPTER SEVEN: INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND ELECTRONIC GOVERNANCE WORKSHOP: NAIROBI, KENYA, SEPTEMBER 4-5, 2000

This is a summary of papers presented at a two-day workshop on Information Technology and Electronic Governance, presented by the Information Technology Standards Association of Kenya and sponsored by the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation in conjunction with the Commonwealth Centre for Electronic Governance, London, UK and Ottawa, Canada. The September, 2000 workshop examined IT developments in Kenya, India, Tanzania and Uganda. The workshop also explored various aspects of electronic government and electronic democracy and discussed ways and means whereby technologies could be used to better conditions in developing countries. Other aspects explored were the need for an effective IT strategy for Kenya and other developing countries and how this might be achieved.