Topic 10

Introduction to Electronic Government

By Ubena John
What is eGovernment?
- Computers as tools for rationalisation of public administration
- Provision of government services through electronic means. The use of ICT in public
administration. It is the adoption of ICT in public service delivery. EGovernment is a
form of legal automation.
- IT supported decision making in public administration
- eGovernment is now extended to e-democracy activities such as e-voting, e-
petitioning, etc.
- Automated data processing in public service e.g. handling of large data for social
insurance, pension schemes, Higher Education Students Loan, etc.
- NIDA, RITA, etc.
Although computers were regarded as tools for rationalisation of public administration, it has
increasingly been understood that IT applications are also source of problems for e.g. privacy
violation (processing of personal data in electronic networks) , lack of transparency, non-
observance to rules/principles of natural justice, etc.

What are the legal issues related to eGovernment?

- How to manage electronic identities and signatures to enhance secure
communications with citizens
- Avoid spam (junk mail) within governing administrative legal frameworks and
eliminating discrimination in accessing public administration agencies
- Develop methods for long term archival of electronic records
- How to ensure that there is security in public administration delivered via IT means.
- IT related rule formulation: rule transformation, formalized supervision and
distribution of competence (Magnusson Sjöberg, 2010, p.37).

What the legal requirements for eGovernment?

- Rights: Access to information, Privacy protection
- Decision support
- Legal system management
- Computerisation or translation of public administration rules into computer codes –
public administration is governed by legal rules. (see Dag Wiese Schärtum, Dirt in the
Machine of Government, IJLIT OUT, 1993; Magnusson Sjöberg, 2010).
Computerisation of public administration should adhere to these rules.
- Processing, documentation and communication
- eGovernment systems are critical infrastructure
- legal implications of IT based administrative procedures
- administrative automation and judicial automation

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 - Models of public administration: rule-based administration, administration governed
by people and market-driven administration (see Magnusson Sjöberg, 2010, p.31).
- Public administration characteristics: foreseeability/predictability, uniformity and
openness. Does current eGovernment meet such criteria?
- eGovernment project should be authorised by the law i.e. public administration
agency should authorise the a program code/ computer program develop in or to be
used in public administration. For Tanzania eGA is responsible for this.
- IT related rule application: how to interpret and apply rules governing submission,
recording of information, the right of parties to be informed, stating reasons for
decision, notification of decision, the right to complain and how to complain against
the decision, filing of electronic records, correction of errors, and reconsideration of
decisions. (Magnusson Sjöberg, 2010, p.41).

Survey on the EGovernment Act, 2019

Definition
The purpose of the Act
The application of the Act
Obligations imposed
Offences