IfG.CC -
Institute for eGovernment

Tremendous changes and developments have been made through the efforts of the Minister, Cllr. Cooper W. Kruah Sr. and his principal deputies over the past three years with support of the President, H.E George M. Weah in the Information Communications Technology (ICT) sector. Improving The ICT Sector In Line With The Pro Poor Agenda of President George M Weah The Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications was created by an Act of National Legislature in September 1978 to provide affordable and accessible postal and telecommunications services through the creation of an enabling environment to foster growth in the sector.

The Need To Empower the Chief Information Office(r)-RL (CIO-RL)

Over the years, we have been striving to achieve a robust e-government program, that seeks not only to benefit the Government of Liberia or GoL, but also the citizens and residents of Liberia. There have been a plethora of challenges that seem to be hindering our efforts to achieve this goal. The lack of resources both human and financial, the lack of infrastructure and the “absence” of political will, are a few of the many challenges that have been strangulating our efforts to achieve our goal. Despite these challenges, significant progress has been made, even though the impact of such progress may not have been felt by the Government and the people of Liberia as we had anticipated. It is safe to say that the impact was not felt because of the absence of an effective “e-Government Champion”; a “champion” with “carte blanche” to make decisions at the senior level. This “champion” would be a person who reports directly to the Office of President of Liberia, thereby giving him/her the much needed authority to drive the GoL’s e-government programs. This article attempts to make the case for a strong e-government “champion” for the achievement of a robust e-government program.

Liberia is blessed with a youthful population who, unfortunately, upon graduation from school is forced to face the harsh realities of unemployment, and sometimes poverty. According to the United Nations, World Bank and other international agencies, Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) can be a driver of economic development. This also means employment. Hence, developed (USA, South Korea et al) and some developing countries (Rwanda, Ghana, and Botswana) have over the years leveraged ICTs to drive their economies. If these countries succeeded in using ICTs to create jobs for their people, why can't Liberia emulate them? What do we need to start creating jobs for our youthful population? What are some of the ways ICTs can be used to create jobs and achieve sustainable economic growth?

At a recent gathering of Liberian dignitaries – the big names, including the US Ambassador accredited to Liberia, USAID Executives, line Ministers and others – at a local hotel, with the Honorable, Dr. Fredrick Norkeh, Minister of Posts & Telecommunications, R. L.., the host in collaboration with the United States Agency for International Development, USAID, the funding partner. They launched what is called the E-Government and Digital Liberia Project, or the Information and Communication Technology (ICT).

In a major statement as Head and most senior management executive of the Information and Communication Technology sector in Liberia, Dr. Norkeh “called on policy makers to join (him) his Ministry (of Posts & Telecommunications)” and the funding partners (USAID) “in championing technological transfer in the country” (Analyst Liberia, March 23, 2017).

Overstock.com Inc, in a press release on Monday, announced that its blockchain subsidiary, Medici Land Governance (MLG) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Liberia’s Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, on the bid to digitize administrative services.

The news today kickstarts a new Ppro Bono pilot project that will explore the possibilities likely to occur in the digitization of existing Liberian government services, as well as the establishment of e-government platforms.

Liberia’s Ministry of Finance and Development Planning (MFDP) and Medici Land Governance (MLG) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) which focuses on land administration in the country.The MoU will lead to a pro bono pilot project that will explore the potential of digitizing existing government services and development of e-governance platforms in the country.

According to a statement issued at the weekend, the signing of the MoU is to promote President Weah’s Pro-Poor Agenda for Prosperity and Development (PAPD), especially Pillar II which talks about the economy and job creation.

The chief of party of Digital Liberia E-Government Project is emphasizing here that if Liberia will be a better place, it means every citizen should be honest, trustworthy and sincere in whatever position he or she occupies in public service.

Madam RieLukowski spoke recently at the 5th ConsultativeMeeting of KvinnaTilKvinna or TK Liberia, urging Liberians to become standard bearers of building integrity, because it’s very significant to the rebuilding process of the country.She explains that the aim and objective of the meeting was to learn more about integrity, understanding the importance of being a person with integrity and how integrity is linked to unity and culture.

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MOC) in collaboration with the Swedish National Board of Trade and World Bank Group launch a service sector website here recently to provide e-government solution to the business community and the public at large.

Commerce Minister Wilson Tarpeh says the LIB Business Hub will not only provide business information but other vital information arising from other institutions, including banking services.

The Ministry of Post and Telecommunications has ended an Egovernment workshop on internet technology for IT personnel from government line ministries and agencies.

E government is a platform designed by the Government of Liberia through the Ministry of Post and Telecommunications to decentralize government development projects. Speaking Saturday, 26 September at the closing ceremony, the head of the Project Management Office, Darren Wilkins, said the essence of the five days training is to build the capacity of trainees.

The policy objectives of the Biometric system is to help ensure a safe and secure workplace by readily identifying government employees and by providing an identification card that is difficult to duplicate or forge. This process has helped the government of Liberia in identifying ghosts and other duplications on the payroll.

What if you could pay your taxes ONLINE and not have to stand IN LINE at the Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA) payment window? What if you could apply for driver’s license ONLINE and not have to stand IN LINE at the Ministry of Transport? What if you could apply for a job ONLINE by simply uploading and submitting your CV or resume directly to the hiring entity? What if you could anonymously REPORT CORRUPTION or ABUSE online? And what if you could apply for a work PERMIT or PASSPORT while you are in a different country? More importantly, what if you could obtain GOVERNMENT SERVICES and INFORMATION from anywhere at any time using an internet-connected device? What if there was a way to actually achieve the transparency, accountability, efficiency, and effectiveness that we require of Government at a lower cost? I have two words for you: “ELECTRONIC GOVERNMENT” or “e-Government”.

The Liberian Leader made the pronouncement at the dedication of a Local ACE Terminal Station at the Liberia Telecommunications Corporation Technical Office on Broad Street in Monrovia.

President Sirleaf continued that with the arrival and subsequent start of the cable system Liberia would be entering the modern age when it comes to information, communication technology (ICT).

Two years of my professional life were spent working at the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications. The first year, I worked on the World Bank funded eLiberia project with the task of creating a “One-Stop Shop” environment (Government e-Portal), to enable Government deliver services and information to citizens online. The second year, saw me working with various stakeholders (Government, Private sector, NGOs, etc) toward the achievement of a robust e-government program that would change the way Government delivers services and information to citizens. During those two years, I managed to complete my doctorate degree writing a dissertation on e-Government in developing countries with focus on Liberia. I learned a lot of things about our Government’s initiatives toward digital government or e-government. I also learned about those lingering problems that continue to hinder our efforts to achieve our goal. One of those “lingering problems” is the totally unorthodox and non-standard way in which Government’s websites are being handled, despite the existence of a comprehensive e-government web strategy developed by the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications (MoPT) and its partners.

Another year has begun and the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector, like all other sectors, anticipates a very hectic and exciting year. We expect to see a lot of big things happening in the sector based on previous works done by stakeholders (of the sector).

Liberia has seen a proliferation of ICT, which has led to the exponential growth of the sector. ICTs are considered vital for socioeconomic development by many organizations, including the United Nations and the World Bank. Here, I refer to social development as that which involves education, social interactions and evolution of social customs, fashion and trends. On the other hand, my reference to economic development is in the context of the creation of (better paying) jobs, a widespread and sustained increase in the living standards of Liberians and accelerated economic activities.

"Not disillusioned by the hurdles such as the lack of an enabling environment and incentive to induce passion, they have also taken additional steps to acquire another level of technical and/or administrative competence as IT professionals in their service to our nation," minister Norkeh noted.

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI) in collaboration with Swedish National Board of Trade (NBT) and World Bank Group (WBG) will on Friday, July 6, 2018, launch a service sector website, which will provide an e-government solution to the business community and the public at large.

This service sector website will serve as a gateway for business institutions and the general public to access essential information about day-to-day activities as it relates to Liberian commerce and information sectors as well as ministries and agencies in Liberia.

The Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications has trained technicians who will help the government in the Information Communication Technology sector and the country’s E-Government program development.

The E-Government program is intended to help agencies and other government organizations move information, and payment processes online to provide services to citizens.

A Paradigm Shift in How Government Delivers Services and Information to “Customers of Public Administration”

The expansion of the internet and its accompanying technologies has brought both increased efficiency and new methods of communication in our way of life. Since its (internet) advent, governments around the world have worked assiduously using all forms of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) to bring public administration online for the delivery of services and information to their “customers” (citizens, businesses, governments, government employees). This is also called Electronic Government or e-Government. One aspect of e-Government involves the use of a single online medium to deliver services and information to customers of public administration. We refer to this single platform as a “one-stop shop web portal,” which is the focus of today’s article.

Now We Must Design and Implement An E-Government Plan that Draws from the “Draft E-Government Strategy 2016-2018”.

A few days ago, I listened to the President as he launched the mobile tax payment system developed by the Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA). I was very impressed with his definition of e-government, (specifically, e-revenue). More importantly, I have been impressed and very happy about the tone in which he speaks regarding the use of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) for sustainable development. From the way he handled his phone at the event, you could tell that the President is a “gadget person” and someone who has tremendous love for technology. It is clear that the President is a fan of ICT, hence, I am not going to dwell on that. But what I have chosen to discuss today, is his obvious “embrace” and support for electronic government or E-Government.