India, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand have not kept up with other countries.
The UN E-Government Survey 2008, based on assessments of 192 U N member states, also shows software programming powerhouse India dropping 26 notches to 113 (down from 87th place in 2005), and the Philippines ranking 66, down from 41 in the 2005 index.
Read more: Asian countries are below average in e-government readiness: UN Survey
India fell 26 notches in the U.N. 2008 E-Government Readiness Index to 113th, compared to No. 87 in 2005, while the Philippines registered a rank of 66 in 2008, down from 41 in 2005.
Singapore and Thailand each fell 16 spots from their 2005 ranking, occupying No. 23 and No. 62, respectively, in the latest index.
It is one of the rare issues uniting politicians, the private sector and organisations with a cause. All are unanimous in their agreement that corruption exacerbates poverty, stifles investment and prevents many economies from reaching their potential, and that unfortunately it is a problem rooted more deeply in Asia than other parts of the world. Despite the graft-busting efforts of their governments, nations such as the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam continue to appear in the lower tiers of Transparency International’s corruption perceptions index. Cleaning up the continent seems destined to remain an uphill trek.
Senior officials from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal have agreed to collaborate on a subregional information communication technology (ICT) project to improve connectivity among the four countries.
Read more: Four South Asian countries to cooperate for ICT connectivity
Governments across the region seem poised to remain big IT spenders. They're determined to put on a friendlier face by expanding their technology investments to offer new and more efficient services to their citizens, but never at the expense of security.