UK parties publish e-government manifestos: The UK's three main political parties have laid out their e-government agendas in the run-up to the general election. Tony Blair's Labour Party has focused its strategy on the "digital divide", proposing schemes to help more people get online and to promote the take-up of broadband. Labour also said it would encourage local authorities to make all of their services available online. The Conservative Party, meanwhile, is centring its attention on government IT projects, saying that, if elected, it would review all major projects and establish a senior ministerial post responsible for all IT initiatives. The Liberal Democrats have also set forth a number of e-government proposals, ranging from subsidising the rollout of broadband to promoting government adoption of open source software. Accenture's recent e-government survey placed the UK 10th in the global rankings, down from eighth place in 2003. The general election is due to take place on 5 May.
Italy allocates e-democracy funding: The Italian government has set aside EUR9.5 million to fund e-democracy initiatives at regional and local levels. According to a report by the European Commission's eGovernment Observatory, 57 projects have been identified as targets for the funding. The projects address a range of topics, from encouraging participation in the democratic process to increasing digital inclusion in areas such as environmental policies, local taxes, health and tourism. About 50 percent of the projects were set up by public bodies in towns with less than 5,000 inhabitants, and 85 percent of the initiatives also involve groups such as citizens' associations, trade unions and NGOs. The majority of the projects use tools such as e-mail lists and web forums to promote democracy and e-participation, but some propose to use advanced technical solutions such as voice systems and geographic information systems to support participation in decision-making processes. The development of e-democracy is one of the key priorities of the second phase of the Italian e-government programme, which was officially approved in November 2003.
Germany prepares to launch e-health cards: The German government is gearing up to launch e-health cards for citizens next year. The new smartcards will replace the current insurance cards in citizens' wallets, which only hold the patient's name, address and insurance number. The new e-health card will be able to store a patient's medical records and prescription information, as well as personal details, and security features will ensure that only health professionals who receive authorisation from the cardholder can access the information stored on the card. The electronic medical cards, which are still in development, may also be designed to include digital signatures, paving the way for their use with other e-government applications, such as online tax declarations. The proposed technology and architecture of the new e-health cards were unveiled by Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, a European research organisation, at the recent CeBIT technology conference in Hannover, Germany.
New Zealand trials open source software: A district health board (DHB) in Whanganui in New Zealand is to launch a pilot scheme to test the use of open source software on desktop PCs. New Zealand newswire Stuff.co.nz reports that the two-month pilot, believed to be the first formal trial by a public sector agency, will see Novell's SuSE Linux software installed on several of the DHB's computers. If the scheme is deemed a success, the open source software will be rolled out to around 200 users in the agency, with about 50 workers staying on Microsoft Windows-based machines. The DHB's chief information officer, Steve Rayner, said that Microsoft's Office suite is well suited to "knowledge workers" in government bodies and ministries, but not so much to the daily running of hospitals, which rely more on clinical and patient administration software. "The power and functionality of Office is lost on most of the people that use it," said Rayner. The chief of the State Services Commission's e-government unit, Laurence Millar, said he would observe the trial closely with a view to sharing knowledge gained from its results across government.
UAE to launch e-Gate system for passengers: The government of the United Arab Emirates is planning to launch "e-Gate" at all airports throughout the country, and eventually at all entry points. The e-government project involves an electronic gateway system that enables travellers to by-pass manual immigration procedures. The electronic passenger clearance system involves the use of smartcards which contain details about the cardholder; users must register their details in advance and undergo procedures involving finger-printing and photography before a smartcard can be issued. The e-Gate system was originally trialled at the Dubai International Airport. "Since it was introduced a couple of years ago, it has been under re-evaluation," said Lieutenant-General Shaikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of the Interior. "It has been concluded that the system is excellent in view of its high accuracy from a security point of view and its security features, which help lift the pressure on staff especially at the peak hours and facilitate procedures for travellers."
Autor: Sylvia Leatham
Quelle: ElectricNews, 13.04.2005
