UK, Germany, France are tops for IT opportunities: The UK, Germany and France all offer good revenue opportunities for ICT vendors targeting local authorities. That's according to the findings of three new reports by market analyst firm Datamonitor, which studied the three largest markets for local government IT spending in Europe. Over the next three years, says Datamonitor, UK councils will increase spending on external ICT to USD4.53 billion, up from USD3.31 billion in 2004, fuelled by the continued drive towards e-government combined with rises in IT budgets. Germany, the second largest market, will up its local government external ICT spend to USD3.02 billion in 2007 from USD2.4 billion in 2004. Meanwhile, Datamonitor predicts, French local authorities will see growth in external ICT spending reach USD2.02 billion in the same time frame. "[...] The UK is currently the most advanced market in Europe. EU and national initiatives in France and Germany, along with their large populations and high numbers of local government institutions, suggest that France and Germany have the potential to catch up with the UK in time," said Datamonitor senior analyst Tim Gower. "However, this is unlikely to occur in the coming years, primarily due to continued budget constraints."
US officials submit e-government budget proposals: The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in the US has requested USD5 million for e-government funding in the fiscal 2006 budget. The amount is the same as that approved by Congress in the last budget. The OMB is also requesting permission to spend USD40 million on e-government initiatives using federal agency fees collected by the General Services Administration (GSA), a request that was turned down last year. The GSA itself is looking for USD2.4 million for fiscal 2006 to support e-government efforts including e-acquisition, e-property and e-travel projects. That figure is down significantly from the USD15.6 million allocated in fiscal 2005. Overall, federal officials are seeking USD65.2 billion for IT spending in the next fiscal year, around 7.1 percent more than the figure approved for fiscal 2005, and 9 percent above the administration's budget request for this fiscal year.
Jordan brings finance systems online: The government of Jordan is taking steps to roll out e-accounting and e-procurement capabilities for a number of its ministries. According to a report in the Jordan Times, the government has signed an agreement with Italy and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), both of which have committed to support the projects. Under its E-government for Development initiative, the Italian government will provide USD575,000 to fund the development and strategic analysis of the two projects, and it will also provide technical assistance throughout their implementation. "This project represents an essential part of the Finance Ministry's mid-term strategy [2004-2007] on financial management reform," said Mohammad Abu Hammour, Jordan's finance minister. The UNDP added in a statement that "through e-procurement and e-accounting, the [Jordanian] government hopes to streamline the procurement and accounting processes, make them more transparent, reduce transaction costs and enhance competitiveness among suppliers for its procurement, thereby lowering the costs for procured goods and services and raising government's capacity to provide public services."
Dubai launches e-government education course: The Dubai School of Government in the United Arab Emirates is launching an education programme in the area of e-government. The E-Government Executive Education Programme, due to begin in March 2005, has been set up in cooperation with Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. The course is aimed at "high-level decision-makers from across the [Middle East] region, including ministers, deputy ministers and director-generals who are leading e-government initiatives in their countries," said Mohammed Al Gergawi, secretary general of the Executive Council of Dubai. The programme is also expected to attract participation from diplomats, development leaders, university presidents, CEOs and CIOs from across the region. The topics to be covered by the programme include devising e-government strategies; choosing partners and resources to implement strategies; understanding potential hurdles; and appreciating e-government evolution and the challenges and opportunities raised by IT.
Jinjiang completes e-government implementation: The city government of Jinjiang in the Fujian province in China has announced the completion of a project to set up a national e-government system. Network infrastructure specialist China Expert Technology Inc was responsible for implementing the programme, which involved integrating new IT infrastructure with legacy systems to establish a platform for the provision of e-government services. China Expert Technology also revealed that it has been awarded a three-year maintenance contract, worth up to USD3.9 million, for the e-government system. The company, which specialises in providing large-scale network infrastructure mostly for e-government projects for communities and municipal governments, said the e-government system could act "as a model project for all cities and counties in the Fujian province."
Autor: Sylvia Leatham
Quelle: ElectricNews, 09.02.2005
