E-Government as a Tool for Modernization of Public Administration

JUNE 24, 2016

AZIZA UMAROVA, UNDP UZBEKISTAN

Why Reform Public Administration?

The ability of governments to achieve economic and social goals with limited resources depends upon efficient and focused government.

This is especially true for developing countries, where government is the main driver of development.

Public administration reform aims to make public institutions:◦ Efficient and Cost effective◦ Flexible and Focused◦ Professional and Ethical◦ Service and Results oriented◦ Transparent and Accountable◦ Modern and Tech-savvy

Public administration reforms in Uzbekistan

Public administration reform has been a cornerstone of government policies since Uzbekistan’s independence in 1991.

Much progress has been achieved thus far in terms of:◦ reviewing the legal framework of state governance,◦ optimizing the size and structure of government agencies (number of civil

servants, departments, etc.),◦ implementing institutional reforms (eliminating duplicate functions, joining

agencies),◦ decentralization of public administration (delegating more power from

center to local authorities),◦ reducing the government’s presence in national economy (privatization of

state owned enterprises),◦ introducing ICT in the provision of public services (e-Government).

Issues and Challenges remain

Administrative obstacles for citizens and businesses

Departmental approach in tackling issues and providing public services

Inefficient internal processes of government agencies

Lack of interagency coordination and collaboration

Regulatory, institutional and technical issues

Absence of legal definitions of public services, administrative procedures, etc.

Lack of qualified human resources in public agencies

How e-Gov contributes to governance reform?

Further economic freedom and sustainable growth in Uzbekistan depends on efficient public governance

Introduction of advanced ICT in all sectors of government is a powerful tool to reform public administration

Developing E-Government in Uzbekistan aims to:◦ optimize functions, structure and business processes within and between

state bodies◦ reduce useless accounting and paper-based document flows◦ broaden public access to public services and government information◦ make interactions between citizens, private sector and state agencies more

efficient and result oriented◦ ensure transparency and accountability of state authorities to the public

What’s done in creating e-Government?

Over 20 ICT projects in various public sectors have been implemented (legislation database, tax, statistics and financial reporting, cargo customs declarations, public utilities, online visa application, etc.).

Over 240 services of 500 public entities are available online at Single Interactive State Services Portal (my.gov.uz) launched in July 2013.

Over 250 datasets from 25 public agencies are available online via Open Data Portal (data.gov.uz) launched in March 2015

112 drafts of legislation have been posted at Regulatory Impact Assessment Portal (regulation.gov.us) launched in May 2015

Single Registry of Public Services will be launched in September 2015 to create an inventory of all government services, forms and blanks

e-Government is not only about IT

20%

- Information Technologies

80%

- BPR

- Regulatory Framework

- Interoperability and Integration

- Whole-of-Government

2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020

Stages of implementing E-Government in Uzbekistan

Stage 1 - Posting Information to Internet

Stage 2 - Electronic Directories and Information Services

Stage 3 - Reengineering Business Processes of Government Agencies

Stage 4 - Providing Interactive and Transactional Services

Uzbekistan is currently at the initial phase of Stage 3, which is an important element of public administration reform

What should be done?

Change the primary focus of public administration◦ Service-oriented architecture in the provision of public services◦ Focus on the most popular and priority services for citizens

Enhance government’s efficiency◦ Reengineer administrative processes to improve the quality, availability and

maturity of online public services◦ Introduce Project Management Standards in public administration◦ Implement Public Private Partnership and Outsourcing

Ensure transparency and collaboration◦ Open Data◦ E-Participation◦ Whole-of-Government approach

South Korea:Government 3.0

Transparent Government

• Releasing government-owned public data

• Encouraging private sector to use public data

• Promoting private-public partnership

Competent Government

• Removing barriers between government departments

• Internalizing collaboration and communication within the government

• Encouraging intelligent administration through Big Data

Service-Oriented Government

• Providing customized public services

• Offering a one-stop shop for business support services

• Narrowing the digital divide

• Utilizing cutting-edge IT to customize public services

Singapore:Government-with-You

Great Britain:Efficient Government

Prime Minister’s Delivery Unit (2001-2010) focused on:

◦ public service performance◦ public sector management

Efficiency and Reform Group(2010-present)

◦ reform the government◦ transform services◦ save costs and support growth

Government Digital Service◦ GOV.UK instead of 1700 websites◦ Digital by Default Service Standard◦ The Functional Model

2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

3.85.5

10.0

14.3

20.0

Efficiency and Reform Sav-ings, £ billions

Australia:Digital Transformation Office

The Australian Government has established the Digital Transformation Office to:

◦ provide leadership on whole-of-government service delivery. ◦ develop and implement user-centered whole-of-government service delivery

policies and standards;◦ design and govern the implementation and enhancement of whole-of-

government service delivery platforms;◦ co-ordinate the funding of whole-of-government service delivery platforms;

and◦ provide advice to the Minister on implementing new government service

delivery proposals.

The Digital Service Standard establishes 16 criteria that Australian Government digital services must meet to ensure they are simpler, faster and easier to use

Estonia: Reducing Administrative Burden

Estonia’s e-solutions have resulted in:◦ An unprecedented level of transparency and accessibility in government◦ Safe, convenient and flexible exchange of private and public data◦ A healthier, better educated population with easy access to social services◦ A prosperous environment for business and entrepreneurship

e-Cabinet – duration of cabinet meetings: 30-90 minutes

e-ID – 90% of population have active digital ID cards (1,1 mln.)

e-Business Register – allows register new company in 20 minutes

i-Voting – 24% of population vote via Internet

e-Residency – to attract foreign investments to Estonia

E-Government Prospects

Before E-Government After

User collects information personally

Administrative Procedures

Civil servant retrieves information from a

database

Information on public services is spread over

many agenciesSingle Interactive Public

Services PortalInformation on services

is available online and via single phone #

Lengthy paper-based document endorsement

Electronic Interaction Framework

Electronic document coordination, efficient deadline management

No electronic interagency data sharing

Common E-Government Platform

Reduced time of interagency cooperation

and data processing

Thank you!

Aziza Umarova, UNDP Uzbekistan

aziza.umarova@undp.org