When information and communications technology (ICT) has made inroads into almost every sphere of human activity, governance cannot be an exception. However, unlike in the sphere of trade and commerce, the challenges of digital governance do not lie simply in storing and transmitting data generated from day-to-day office work digitally. The real challenge is bringing about changes in the age-old work culture of the humongous bureaucracy. This is because, with digitisation, information not only can pass instantly within the government offices, it also becomes accessible just with a keystroke by clients seeking service from the government. This is about openness, which comes up against the long-nurtured mindset of guardedness about official information. Even so, given the political will to effect the necessary changes is there, it will not be a big deal to get around the remaining inertia in the administrative-work culture. The good news is that the government has meanwhile made much headway in this direction. Thus the progress made over the past years in digital government has been duly recognised by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) as it has ranked Bangladesh 119th among 193 nations. The ranking is the outcome of the surveys the UN body carries out every two years. The grading has been done in the shape of E-Governance Development Index (EGDI), which reflects the modest progress Bangladesh has made over the past years in e-governance through its initiatives to increase efficiency and capacity in the area of delivering public service.
They diversified the use of internet services amid pandemic, survey finds
Women in Bangladesh have increased and diversified their use of mobile internet services ever since the Covid-19 outbreak began as social distancing restrictions in particular have led to a rise in video calls, social media use and viewing of online videos, according to a survey.
A Memorandum of Understanding has signed between the Digital Security Agency, Bangladesh Computer Council and the Cyber Warfare and Information Technology Directorate under the Bangladesh Air Force for mutual cooperation in cyber security.
State minister for information and communication technology Zunaid Ahmed Palak was present on the occasion as the chief guest, a press release said in Dhaka on Thursday.
Bangladesh has ranked 119th among 193 countries in the UN E-Government Development Index (EGDI) 2020, according to a new report.
Earlier, the country held a similar position in the EGDI published in 2018.
Bangladesh, however, emerged as one of the leaders in e-government development among the LDCs, according to the latest report.
Read more: Bangladesh ranks 119th in e-government index but UN report hails authorities' efforts
Speakers at a programme have urged the government to provide high-speed internet at affordable cost across the country to ensure people's access to available digital services.
They also stressed the need for bringing down the prices of digital devices by adjusting tax rates and promoting local manufacturers.
Besides, they suggested creating sector-specific skilled human resources for digital transformation of both government and private services in a bid to fulfil the vision of 'Digital Bangladesh'.
Read more: BD: Govt urged to provide high-speed internet at affordable cost