South Africa rolls out BPM system: The Office of the President in South Africa is introducing business process management (BPM) software to streamline its communications processes. BPM software supplier Metastorm will provide the Presidency with its e-Work software to automate the handling and tracking of correspondence sent to the Office by other departments, citizens, businesses and NGOs. Until now, all incoming correspondence has been tracked and forwarded to the appropriate department manually. The diverse nature of the incoming e-mails has made it difficult to respond to correspondence in a timely manner and maintain a sufficient level of customer service. The new system will be implemented for 350 users, enabling correspondence for the entire organisation to be recorded, tracked and responded to in a suitable timeframe. The system will be delivered by IA Systems, a partner of Metastorm South Africa, in collaboration with the State Information and Technology Agency.
Malta, Estonia score well in eEurope chart: Malta and Estonia are the most developed of the new EU member states in terms of creating an Information Society, according to a new report. A study prepared by business school INSEAD for software giant SAP assessed the "alignment" of the new EU member states with the "old" ones in terms of the objectives set out in the eEurope 2005 Action Plan. The study measured 28 countries (25 EU Member States and three candidate countries) based on how they compare to the average score of the 15 "old" member states. Malta and Estonia were the only two new member states deemed to be "totally aligned" with eEurope 2005. Six new member states were identified as being "somewhat aligned"; two old member states were also ranked in this category: Portugal and Greece. Lithuania, Hungary and the three candidate countries featured in the lowest category, "development required." The report notes that many new member states are transitioning to market economies or sovereign status, and need to develop their national economies in order to boost investment in ICT. here (PDF format).
Scotland launches junior website: The Scottish Executive has launched a website designed to encourage children to become more interested in democracy and citizenship. Called JX (short for JuniorExec), the site is aimed at 8- to 12-year-olds; according to research conducted by the Executive, older children prefer to use the main website of the Executive, www.scotland.gov.uk. The interactive site is presented by the Executive's "virtual newscaster", Seonaid, and features animation, games and video clips. Information is available on a variety of topics, from the environment and health issues to voting and law and order. Children who use the site will be able to access interviews with ministers conducted by Seonaid. "Junior Exec brings information to life by encouraging children to learn in a fun and engaging way," said Education Minister Peter Peacock in a statement. The site also has a section that provides resources for parents and teachers.
Denver is top US city for e-services: Denver is the top large US city in terms of providing online services to citizens, according to a new study. FCW.com reports that the fourth annual Urban E-Government Study, released by the Taubman Center for Public Policy at Brown University, ranks the largest city governments in the US in terms of e-services for citizens. Criteria that were assessed included availability of information, number of online services, privacy and security policies, and access for users with disabilities. Denver retained its number one position from last year's study, although its overall score fell. Cities that improved their rankings included San Diego, which moved up to second place from 18th; New York City, which jumped to third position from 38th; and Los Angeles, rated fifth compared to 36th last year. One of the main reasons for improvements in the ratings was the implementation of better privacy and security policies. Nonetheless, the percentage of cities providing e-services fell to 40 percent from 48 percent last year.
Italy helps Albania with e-government rollout: Italy will partner with the United Nations to help Albania develop its e-government programme, reports the EU Observatory. Italy's Department for Innovation and Technologies said that it would provide technical expertise to the Albanian government, assisting it with modernisations of its customs and public accounting processes. The new customs and accounting applications will be made available over a new government network called GovNet. Funded by the UN Development Program (UNDP) and the European Commission, GovNet will connect major government departments and support an intranet, enabling secure e-mail communications and sharing of information across departments. Italy has also contributed funding to the UNDP, which supports the use of ICT to improve government accountability.
Autor: Sylvia Leatham
Quelle: ElectricNews.Net , 29.09.2004
