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Many challenges are faced by governments in terms of security, data, accountability, mobility, efficiency and innovation. What can be done to overcome these big IT issues? How can we drive a nation towards an IT enabled future?
Speaking at the summit, Information and Communication Technology Agency of Sri Lanka (ICTA) CEO Reshan Dewapura said: “ICT is the fastest growing sector in the world. It is truer in our region and more now.” He also noted that it has the potential to change and delivery to the public.
Over 500 government entities are connected while there are over 400 institutions having programs that connect with a citizen. He also added that around 105 e-services are available to the public. Other initiatives such as m-government and open data are some of the future initiatives they look forward to establishing in Sri Lanka. He said: “m-government is on the road map where it will be completed in the future.”
Six trades
Western governments are under siege from various issues such as taxes, reductions and inflation just to name a few, stated FutureGov Editor-at-Large and former New Zealand Government CIO Laurence Millar. He revealed that governments should focus on six trades in order to overcome these issues to provide a better system for citizens.
Firstly, governments should have an online service delivery that enables citizens to access information and services on the web. Moving towards this goal, Minister of Public Management Reforms Naveen Dissanayake launched the official one-stop Government web portal at the conference.
Millar also stated that governments should look at building capabilities, sharing services, creating sustainable business models, involving digitalisation and expanding into the mobile area.
Big data
While big data is big, when the size gets too big to store, Miller explained that data can be big in five ways – according to volume, velocity, variety, complexity and variability. He said: “2.5 exabytes (equivalent to one billion gigabytes) of data is created every day. 90% of the data in the world was created in the last two years while 80% of that data is unstructured.” This means that huge chunks of data are being generated today.
What does this mean for governments? They have to modify their model to allow so much of data to be stored in the system. Miller elaborated that governments have to move from using the traditional data approach to big data approach where data will be flexible and responsive. Data needs to be kept alive forever.
Digitalising an entire nation
Municipality of Copenhagen Citizen Service Denmark CEO Thomas Jakobsen stated that with a population of six million in Denmark, one of the key things to have in a country is a call centre as it pushes citizens to use online services. He added that they get around two million calls a year.
Their online service has been extended to applying for driver’s license, health insurance, identification, passports and even for weddings.
Speaking on the subject, ‘How to digitalise an entire nation,’ he said: “In Denmark and in Copenhagen, almost 80% of the online services are used. Also when people are getting to 65 years, they can apply for pension – they actually apply online.”
Furthermore, almost 70% of the population checks their tax refunds status online while around 66% of unemployed people in Denmark have applied for unemployment benefits. He also revealed that almost 90% of the Danish population has access to the internet.
In accessing these online services, they have a national secure online identification where all citizens have a unique national security number. Jakobsen added: “So we have a very secure online system. It was launched two years ago and after only one year of usage, almost 80% of the population now has this card.”
By enabling the use of online services to citizens, governments can save a lot of money. He revealed that in the last three years, their government saved almost 10 million euros. “We have had a Government which says you have to use those kinds of online services because there is a lot of money in it. We have a very ambitious strategy. The politicians in Denmark actually said that the public must use the online services. It is mandatory and now has a norm saying that you should use it. 35 of the most used solutions are mandatory,” asserted Jakobsen.
Currently, the Danish Government is investing a lot of money to help and encourage citizens to use these online services. At the same time, the Government is also focusing on helping people who are unable to use those services. He noted: “20% as we see it now are not using these online services, of course because of many barriers like languages, being handicapped, lack of skill, but we help them. The citizen service centre, the skills that these people have here is to take care of those people who are not able to use those online services.”
He also mentioned that it becomes important to be closer to citizens; therefore they use various platforms including Facebook to communicate with them.
Enabling a broadband economy
Over the years, systems sizes have tremendously expanded. Sri Lanka Telecom Group CEO Lalith de Silva stated that 30 years back, while he was working on a hotel management system for the then Oberoi Hotel, he made an online, real time system that consisted of a memory capacity of 256kb with a data communication of 1,200kbs. Today, it has grown upto 26mbs with memory capacities spoken of in gigabytes or more.
Speaking on the subject ‘Driving the nation towards a broadband economy,’ De Silva stated that the country has placed singular initiatives and programs in order to meet their target of achieving a 75% ICT literacy level by 2016.
He added: “As a result of ICT agencies e-initiatives, literacy has grown from 4% in 2005 to in excessive of 40% in 2013. On the Global Network Readiness index, Sri Lanka has moved to 69th position this year from 72nd position last year. Also, we have moved up in several other rankings. The most important transformational change in telecom industry in Sri Lanka is the drive we have towards the least price for voice and broadband solutions in the world. Sri Lanka is now ranked as the country with the lowest rates.”
He further spoke on the mobile and broadband penetration in the country: “Looking at the country’s telecommunications trend from par with global trends, mobile penetration has reached 100% and broadband penetration is going to increase.” De Silva added that they are forecasting an overall 7% penetration increase in broadband across service operators.
To become a digital government, De Silva explained that the telecommunications industry should be well aware with the challenges ahead. These challenges include providing the longest network with increased affordability spread across the entire population.
He said: “The ultimate objective of e-government is to enable citizens. Hence, e-government policy formation should be citizen centric. Citizens should be the greater responsibility of being the key stakeholder of driving e-government. They should voice their needs, engage and eventually be the owners of this transformation.”
SLT has already started their plans to further expand their networks locally and internationally. While SLT connects globally by SMW3, SMW4 and two other private cables, De Silva explained that through SMW5, they will be able to connect much faster in the future.
They are also in the process of converting all customers into Next-Generation Network (NGN). He added: “By now 50% of the customers have been migrated and we expect to complete this target by 2014.”
With the replacements of copper networking cables to fibre optics, De Silva elaborated that they will be able to deliver a bandwidth of 16mb to 90% of their customers. He added that 50% of the project has been completed with expectations to finish by 2014.
Having a smart government
“In order to have a smart government, you have to have smart strategies,” stated ICTA Re-engineering Government Director Wasantha Deshapriya.
Speaking on the topic ‘Towards smart government,’ he noted that it’s important to assess the current situation in the country as that alone will help towards building a smart government. To do that, governments should look at four key areas.
1. Smart leadership
In improving e-leadership and e-governance, many workshops have been conducted with over 200 local and 10 international institutions taking part. Deshapriya stated that smart leadership doesn’t work if there is a lack of e-government visions and if there is a low understanding of capabilities of e-governance.
It is important to have an improved institutional framework, e-leadership programs and examinations and empowered CIOs to work as a CIO e-governance.
2. Smart e-services
It is necessary to have proper information services. He noted that in Sri Lanka we have over 400 trilingual websites without a cost to the Government and 2,500 services given through the Government Information Centre (GIC).
The problem encountered today is that Sri Lanka doesn’t concentrate on providing mobile applications even though mobile penetration statistics show tremendous growth. Currently, under interactive services, there are 12 Government services and five mobile applications while under digital intermediary services, there are 66 services, 15 transactional services and two whole-of-government services.
Deshapriya stated that there is an extremely low usage of Government mobile applications and SMS services. In order to obtain citizens to use more of these services, the Government has to create publicity, utilise the ‘Mobile First’ policy and introduce more interesting and engaging services.
3. Smart use of e-governance
Common information infrastructures such as the Lanka Government Network and Lanka Gate are rarely used. There are also very few information systems and legal infrastructure and information security systems with low security which needs to be improved and made aware to the public.
4. Smart operational model
“Government organisations shy away from e-governance,” stated Deshapriya, adding that this is due to lack of professionals and part-time CIOs with very little interest in the institution.
He noted that governments should shift from supply driven to demand mobilisation models through more accountability. He added, “e-transformation is not a one-off thing. It has to take stages. We have to move into the next stage to move on to e-governance.”
Electronic identity management At the panel discussion on ‘Electronic identity for enabling integrated government service delivery,’ Austria Federal Chancellery and Digital Austria and The Austrian Computer Society Head Peter Reichstaedter said that to have successful online identification process, you have to separate functionality from technology because personalised information is sensitive data which needs to be handled well.
Ministry of Communications and Information Technology Afghanistan National Data Centre (ANDC) Technology and Innovation Acting Director Wais Payab stated that in Afghanistan obtaining a national identification card is not mandatory according to the law. He added, “Only 60% of the population has an ID card. We are trying to legalise it.”
To offer electronic cards, ANDC first has to create a family book. It starts with verifying the head of the family and then follows to the rest of the members with enrolment and verification for each member via the head of the family. This process lessens out the risks and makes the identification process easier.
The use of this e-card enables vehicle registration and driving license and it is only valid for a period of 10 years. After its expiration, citizens must enrol again.
Although the process hasn’t started off yet, ANDC already has a goal of producing 30,000 cards daily by April of 2014. Payab added, “By 2016/17, we are hoping to enrol around 15 to 20 million citizens.”
Location analytics
ESRI adds colour and value to maps with their Geographic Information Systems (GIS) that helps people understand and learn about their geographical area. ESRI Government Manager Richard Leadbeater stated: “It’s more than visualisation. It’s not just a map. These maps give you a lot of information, drive time, demographics, service areas, etc. GIS is about simplifying and integrating all sources of data.”
He also mentioned that 85% of government data has location attributes. The GIS platform can be used as a part of business intelligence and for e-governance. Governments can check on the current status of the infrastructure management, tax payers, storms and floods, etc., with GIS.
As an example, Leadbeater’s mother-in-law was looked after with the use of location mapping and other technologies that enabled them to always be aware of her movements. He added, “You can look for things that drive the economy and the citizens.”
Open government
Providing an open government has its risks, stated South Australian Cabinet Office Community Engagement and Stakeholder Relations Principal Gail Fairlamb at a panel discussion. She added: “It started off with government organisations stating that some citizens will abuse data, but a year later, government organisations have seen the use and imperative of open government.”
ICTA Program Specialist Thushara Suraweera stated that since Sri Lanka is not an open Government and isn’t far from the policy, ICTA is encouraging the Government to open up some data.
In answer to the question, ‘who owns the data?’ Fairlamb stated that the answer depends on who’s asking the question. However, Suraweera stated, “Who is the government? Government is people, so people own the data. The government should not open security and privacy data, but other data.”
Fairlamb further emphasised that the economy of the country should be taken into consideration when deciding on an open government. She questioned, “What is it for the community and for the government? Is it for transparency of decision-making?”
Can governments save money by having an open government? Western Australia Department of Local Government CIO Alex Evans stated that opening data to the public saves government money. She added that the UK Government saves hundreds of billion pounds every year.
The rise of Mobile First
In the year 2009/2010, seven out of nine provinces had over 70% of ICT in their homes with a majority having more telephones that any other device, stated LIRNEasia CEO Professor Rohan Samarajiva. He added: “There are more telephones than TVs in the Northern Province.”
He further stated that in 2011 there were more telephones than more motor vehicles in the country and internet usage was relatively low with around 80% not having internet access.
“A great number of people are using the internet off the mobile platforms and mobile phones,” stated Samarajiva. It was estimated that by October 2012, there were around 1.5 million mobile internet users and 2.5 million internet users in the country. He added, “Not only here, but around the world, mobile is the dominant platform.”
He further said that to increase the mobile penetration in the country, the Government should produce more mobile applications. Now with the newly-launched Government web portal that showcases information on one single platform, he elaborated that the Government should now have more data sets, have multiple years of information in one excel sheet and implement strong APIs.
In a panel discussion on ‘Mobile First,’ he stated, “We have to energise and encourage our mobile users to use that data. Communication could build applications.”
Malaysia Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Information Management Under Secretary Marsineh Jarmin stated that 35% of internet users live in large cities with 35% coming from Kuala Lumpur. The rural areas consist of only 28% of internet users.
Recently, Malaysia declared a three-day state of emergency in two districts due to smoke from fires coming in from Sumatra. “How do people get this information? They get it through mobile applications,” stated Jarmin.
She added that the Government of Malaysia targets providing 90% of government services online by 2020. However, the problem encountered is trust. “No one trusts government data. Only seven million people use our data. Sharing and building and application are okay, but trust is hard to get.”
She further explained that to get people to use more of the government services online and on mobile, it’s important to listen to the citizens. “58% of the internet users are university educated. 43% are of the ages 40 and above. Why are the younger ones not a part of it? We realised that the younger ones do not have the financial support.” Hence, the government decided to bring in a scheme to pay back US$ 250 dollars for every person who buys a phone below the age of 40.
Speaking at the discussion, Reichstaedter stated that governments should check out their existing mobile strategies and improve them. He believes that mobile applications should be tried and tested by kids who usually are harder to impress when it comes to applications.
Mobile government
Reichstaedter asserted that governments must develop innovative government services to get citizens to use those services. At the same time, ‘targetisation’ is what e-governance should achieve.
He added that one content should be shared and used by different access portals. “There is a lot of duplication of data within ministries,” stated Reichstaedter adding that this could be eliminated with the use of e-government and m-government. He added: “When you share information, you are able to reuse the data. Efficiency isn’t the only one you have to think about. Innovation is.”
Connected government
Speaking at a panel discussion on ‘Connected Government, ICTA eServices Program Head Kanchana Thudugala stated: “A citizen should be able to get information from the government at their convenience.” However, he noted that citizen education and awareness about these online services is the foremost thing that the government should do. “With awareness, you can open up different portals. One service could open up many other portals.”
In a poll asking 3,000 citizens what they wanted more from the government, Jakobsen said that many citizens asked for more online services. He believes that governments should have public forums where everyone can see other people’s complaints.
Fairlamb also explained that the government found out through an online discussion that the public was angry about a certain legislation which helped them later to solve it. She said, “Understanding that technology fails and that man makes mistakes is the result of a responsible government. Government is fallible.”
Connected society
Sri Lanka Telecom Enterprise Sale General Manager Janaka Abeysinghe stated that in order to move towards a connected society, there should be an affordable delivery service given to the citizens. The government should also provide an easily accessible service with full access to information at anytime anywhere for all citizens.
Speaking on the subject, ‘Empowering society with ICT,’,he stated, “If you consider Facebook as a country, it has the third highest population.” He added that Sri Lanka needs better internet penetration.
According to Sri Lanka Telecom statistics report for this year, fixed line has grown to 2% while mobile penetration has grown to 4.5%. He stated, “ICT had changed the way we work, live, learn and play.”
Pix by Sameera Wijesinghe and Anusha de Silva
