Internet access to stretch across Cambodia: A US-funded project in Cambodia is bringing the Internet to more than 20 provinces and municipalities throughout the country. The Asia Foundation, a San Francisco-based non-governmental organisation, is using USD1.2 million in US aid to establish a network of 22 Community Information Centres (CICs). Using wireless technology, the centres will provide Internet access, e-mail and other computer services to the local community, as well as a Khmer-language Web portal. One of the aims of the initiative is to give Cambodian voters access to information ahead of the general election in July. However, some critics of the initiative have pointed out that maintaining high-tech equipment in remote areas of the country will be difficult and that the Cambodian media has a poor reputation for accuracy.
South Africa studies SMS potential: The South African administration is examining the potential role of mobile phones in improving the accessibility of e-government services. Speaking at the recent "ICT in Government" convention near Johannesburg, Andile Ngcaba, the director general of the Department of Communications, said the government was considering the development of "mobile-centric" applications for the rollout of e-government. Ngcaba drew attention to the fact that only 3 million people have access to the Internet, whereas there are currently 14 million mobile phones in use in the country, with that figure expected to grow to more than 20 million in the next five years. SMS could be used extensively, said the director general, for example to remind people to collect official documents. Some delegates at the convention doubted the viability of Ngcaba's proposals, however.
Queensland trials Wi-Fi hotspots: The government of Queensland in Australia is planning a 12-month trial of Wi-Fi in government buildings. Around 20 802.11b "hotspots" offering wireless Internet access will be installed in state buildings in central Brisbane. Queensland Innovation and Information Economy Minister Paul Lucas said the hotspots would be in locations "where there will be significant public use" and would provide users with cheap mobile access to the Internet, as well as to e-government services. Lucas explained that users who visit government buildings will be able to log on to the Queensland government Web site, from where they will be able to connect to their own Internet service provider, on either a subscription or pay-per-use basis.
China may favour local software suppliers: China is considering a proposal that would require its central and local governments to purchase most of their software from domestic vendors. According to media reports, China's State Informationization Leading Group made the suggestion at a recent meeting to discuss the government's target of helping domestic software manufacturers to achieve a 60 percent market share by 2005. The proposed initiative would allocate at least 70 percent of the software budget for China's multibillion-dollar E-Government project for local products. The agency also recommended that 50 percent of nearly all other types of government software should be bought from Chinese suppliers. If the proposal is approved, it would be blow to non-Chinese software makers such as Microsoft, which recently agreed to show the Chinese government the underlying source code for Windows, in an effort to ease concerns about its security.
On-line tax filing grows in Thailand: Filing tax returns on-line is gaining popularity among the citizens of Thailand. The government's Revenue Department is reaping the rewards of an aggressive promotion of electronic tax filing, under the auspices of the state's e-government initiative. The Revenue Department recently reported that the number of personal income tax returns filed electronically has reached 70,000 so far this year -- more than the 63,000 on-line returns submitted for the whole of 2002. By the end of 2003, the department hopes to have received 200,000 on-line returns. Still, this figure is only a small percentage of the 5 million returns the government receives annually.
Quelle: electricnews
