IfG.CC -
Institute for eGovernment

In the current business environment, Information Systems, the Internet and global communication networks are creating new opportunities for organisational coordination and innovation. Such systems, used in government/governance, can extend reach and effectiveness of both to remote locations, and improve service delivery to citizens. Current practice has been satellite based communication links, but the associated costs are prohibitive and result in minimised access size of paths, (bandwidth) leading to slow Internet speeds, for example.

Government officials from Zambia, Namibia, Malawi and Tanzania have been to Uganda to see for themselves what the country is doing, with the aim of using the Ugandan experience as a blueprint for their respective countries.

The UK government has announced plans to remove ICT from the GCSE curriculum for two years, a move that faces criticism from the IT industry.

The government revealed plans to cut ICT studies from the curriculum back in January, along with the announcement that it will launch a revamped ICT syllabus in 2014 more suited to modern technology than learning how to make a Powerpoint presentation.

The Catapult centre will act as a "hub for the best innovations in the digital sector," and will conduct research into sustainability, consumerisation and the impact that new technologies are having on existing platforms, according to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS).

The UK government is to proceed with scrapping the current programme of ICT lessons in schools from September, it has announced.

The decision means that whilst schools are still required to teach ICT at all key stages in the meantime, teachers will be able to decide how to do so without government direction.

While the whole idea of online government appeared new to some of the commentariat, insiders will recognise a lot of old wine in new bottles. First, the appointment of entrepreneur and philanthropist Martha Lane Fox as head of a new digital public services unit revives the old role of "e-envoy". It's barely a year since the last relic of the e-envoy's office, the E-Delivery Team, was shuffled off to the Department for Work and Pensions. Lane Fox brings it back to the heart of Whitehall.

In a speech, Brown said the government's goal was to replace the first generation of e-government with a more interactive and personalised service.

Prime Minster Gordon Brown has reiterated the government's determination to slash back office costs through the development of shared service centres with commercial organisations.

"The government is committed to achieving £4 billion of savings from back office functions by 2012-13. To drive this ambitious programme forward, we intend to establish a number of business service companies that will handle the routine back office functions of Whitehall departments," said Brown.

Speaking this morning, the Prime Minister outlined how country-wide broadband and an increase in online, interactive, personalised public services would create “immense opportunities” to transform the way citizens interact with government.

Economy minister Arlene Foster launched the Northern Ireland Broadband Fund, which will provide support to businesses undertaking technology trials related to the rollout of high-speed broadband.

It is financed under the European Regional Development Fund Sustainable Competitiveness Programme 2007-13, and will have a particular focus on the delivery of broadband services to rural areas.

The report shows that, for the first time, there is a greater proportion of households with broadband in the rural parts of the UK’s nations and regions than there are in urban areas. Across the UK as a whole, 59 per cent of households in rural areas now have broadband compared to 57 per cent of urban areas.

A growing number of households are adopting high-speed connections and this should bolster the argument for the roll-out of super-fast broadband across the nation. Experts believe that access to high-speed connections in isolated areas could help to breathe new life into countryside communities and boost the rural economy.

The UK dropped one place in this years EIU digital economy rankings, which reflect how countries maximise the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) for economic and social benefit.

"We have downgraded the UK's scores this year in the area of government policy and vision," Mr McCualey said.

Speaking at the opening of the 16th Ordinary Session of the AU Executive Council, Abdoulie Janneh, the UN under-secretary-general and executive secretary of the Economic Commission of Africa, said ICTs can improve performance of businesses and the efficiency of markets.

The UN official also said ICTs can empower citizens and communities by increasing their access to knowledge.

With the curtain closed on the two-day review by the United Nations General Assembly of the outcomes of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), Member States have adopted an outcome document which aims at bridging the digital divide, ensure freedom of speech, and address Internet governance to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

"ICT [Information and Communications Technologies] has played an increasingly important role in promoting economic and social development, such as enhancing productivity, facilitating trade, creating quality jobs, providing ICT-based services such as e-health and e-learning, and improving governance," said Mogens Lykketoft, UN General Assembly President, who convened the conference, known as the WSIS10 High-Level Meeting, which began Tuesday and wrapped up last evening.

When the Millennium Development Goals were developed in 2000, the vast potential for information and communication technologies (ICTs) to support development efforts was recognized; but so was the inequitable access to those technologies.

According to UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova, her organization is willing to support Thailand in terms of technological development as information and communication technology (ICT) is very important nowadays. Not only is the knowledge on ICT vital to teachers and students but also to everyone. She expressed that tablet PCs should not be used just for education, but also for occupational purposes.

Telecom minister Kapil Sibal on Friday announced a scheme is to provide broadband connectivity to panchayati raj institutions, which will cost Rs20,000 crore in the initial phase. The scheme will be completed by 2014, he said.

President-elect Barack Obama is urging the US congress to approve plans to spend billions of dollars on road and bridge projects as part of his economic stimulus plan.

However, some CIOs of US states are also hoping that their aging IT infrastructures will also qualify for investement.