- Political Support
The first of these common ingredients is the political support of the highest authority in the country. In all three cases analyzed, the support of the president has been instrumental in mobilizing other critical elements, such as legislative changes, institutional strategy, and budgetary allocation.
Read more: Latin America: 6 Reasons Why eGovernment Succeeded in Colombia, Uruguay, and Panama
For over two decades now, Information Communication Technologies (ICT) have been sweeping the globe, from the industrialized nations of the North to developing nations of the South. Some of the most dynamic growth of the latter has been in Latin America and the Caribbean, although connectivity, participation rates, product offerings, services, and costs and revenue vary widely.
Internet retailing provides a good case example. As pointed out by Daniel Latev, writing in this publication, Latin America topped Internet growth globally, achieving a 24 percent increase together with the Asia Pacific region; and it is expected to achieve a compounded annual growth rates of 17 percent through 2015. Generating $12 billion in sales in 2010, with Brazil, Chile and Argentina leading the way, Internet retailing now ranges from extensive online product catalogues (e.g., Walmart, Carrefour) to online purchasing from both bricks and mortar stores and e-commerce only companies. Additionally, collective buying sites, such as US-based Groupon, are emerging in more developed markets such as Brazil.
Public management involves a combination of actions undertaken by an entity in the pursuit of its goals, ends and objectives, based on its priorities. To this end, for local, regional and national governments, information and communications technologies (ICTs) have become one of the most important means for achieving such goals and objectives.
Read more: ICT And Public Administration: Challenges For Latin America
The plan, known as eLAC2015, was approved by delegates by means of the "Lima Declaration", at the end of the Third Ministerial Conference on the Information Society of Latin America and the Caribbean, which was held from 21 to 23 November in the Peruvian capital.
Participants reaffirmed their conviction that public policymaking must incorporate the mainstreaming of information and communications technologies (ICTs) for countries' development.
During the ceremony chaired by Quito’s Mayor, Mr Paco Moncayo, representatives of the three participating cities, Cartagena de Indias (Colombia), Cusco (Peru) and Quito (Ecuador), shared the experiences derived from the project and evaluated its results.
Read more: UNESCO’s IFAP ends e-government project in Latin American World Heritage cities