"We have made great strides in making government more accessible to Canadians," said Minister Owen. "Forty-five services are now fully on-line. The Government On-Line 2004 report highlights our achievements to date and addresses the remaining key challenges to put all 130 of the services most needed by citizens and businesses on the Internet by 2005." Through the GOL initiative, the Government of Canada has improved services for individuals and businesses by redesigning its main Web site - the Canada Site (www.canada.gc.ca ) - which offers a convenient point of access to a wide range of programs and services. As well, specialized gateways and portals organize information and services according to users' perspectives and needs.
The volume of on-line transactions, such as visiting Web sites and downloading information or forms, increased by 54% in 2003. The Jobs, Workers, Training and Career portal registered more than eight million user sessions in 2003, and the number of job banks offered via this portal has doubled. Information for international clients seeking to do business with Canada has also been expanded.
The government's expanded on-line services offer economic advantages as well. For example, Canadians who submit on-line requests for Statements of Contribution (to the Canada Pension Plan) receive them within 10 days, while the same request sent by mail takes about one month to process and return. In addition, businesses that incorporate on-line pay $200 rather than the regular $250, and $20 to file an annual return on-line rather than $40 for a paper filing, a 50% savings.
Human Resources and Skills Development's Web Record of Employment (ROE) service has processed nearly 73,000 transactions as of March 20, 2004, saving time and costs for payroll professionals. It is estimated that by 2006 at least 80% of businesses will submit their ROEs on-line.
Similarly, HRSD's E-Payroll will link business and governments electronically and enable real-time access to and verification of payroll data, thus simplifying the delivery of social programs to Canadians and rendering cost savings for both business and governments.
The Secure Channel is a common infrastructure connecting Canadians and businesses to the government with the highest standards in privacy, security, availability and reliability. Already in use by several GOL services, the Secure Channel will also be used by Canadians during the 2006 Census, enabling Canadians to fill out their surveys on-line.
Lastly, the number of wireless services the Government of Canada now offers to users equipped with Web-enabled cell phones or personal digital assistants is constantly increasing. For example, Canadians can now use these devices to obtain toll-free numbers, access up-to-date economic forecasts or obtain contact information for their Member of Parliament.
You can access the annual report on the GOL initiative at www.gol-ged.gc.ca or www.tpsgc.gc.ca.
Quelle: Government of Canada Newsroom, 01.04.2004
