The philosophy of e-government is well understood in SA, but it will take about 10 years before implementation brings significant change to government administration.
Electronic government is about service delivery online, around the clock. Instead of waiting in queues and filling out forms , citizens can conduct their business with government over the Internet or through a call centre at a time convenient to them.
For a country's citizens, e-government is about convenience, but for the government, e-government is about efficiency and reduced costs.
In SA, government is the highest spender on IT . According to research firm Forge Ahead, total IT expenditure by government and parastatals last year is estimated at R10,2bn, up 13% on the previous fiscal year.
Forge Ahead's report says the big spenders in government are the SA Police Service; the SA Revenue Service; national treasury; the justice & constitutional development department; the home affairs department; the Gauteng, KwaZulu Natal and Western Cape provincial governments; and the city of Cape Town.
"The transition from a paper-based administration to e-government is slow," says T-Systems strategy and business development manager Desmond Seeley.
"The first phase of e-government is giving citizens access to information such as how to apply for a passport or an identity document. In SA, this will be possible before the end of the year," he says.
"Over time, as complex computer systems are integrated across government departments, it becomes possible to perform more complicated interactions, such as applying for a passport or identity document online. Finally, a transactive process is made possible, whereby you can pay a municipal bill or receive a pension payment online," says Seeley.
The argument for e-government is compelling. Between birth and death, a person will interact with government about a wide range of issues, including politics, communication, benefits, tax, property, marriage, health and education. Businesses also, between their incorporation and liquidation, interact with government about issues such as finance, subsidy funding, taxes and exports .
Arguments against e-government include expense and elitism. Rural Telecommunications Development Company CEO Simon White says e-government excludes most of SA's population.
"Right now it is elitist, but in time access is likely to be made available to more of the population," he says.
Seeley says e-government will eventually be made available through shops, schools, community centres and even mobile units for remote areas. "Call centre technology will play an important role too. Many people are more comfortable talking than typing," he says.
E-government's main trump card is improved efficiency.
Government departments are open to the public from 7.30 am to 3.30 pm, five days a week. Service is process driven and there is much dissatisfaction.
"That will change," says Seeley. "E-government will allow administration to be governed by life events rather than by bureaucracy. And because it's electronic, it will be available 24 hours a day, every day of the week.
"It will lead to significant improvements in efficiency. There are more than 2 000 forms that exist in government departments and a lot of information is duplicated. We don't need all those forms, and e-government projects involve a lot of rationalisation."
SA leads Africa in the implementation of e-government projects but lags behind initiatives in developed economies. That's not necessarily a disadvantage - many lessons can be learnt from costly mistakes made elsewhere. Progress will be slow because the changing of some processes will involve changes to existing legislation. However, e-government is well understood at conceptual level; the challenge is to implement it.
"There is a need for more action and results," says White.
