Purpose

Purpose

The E-government Strategy shapes the way government agencies use technology to improve people's access to government information and services. The Achieving e-government project set out to assess how government is delivering the Strategy, specifically:

• agency achievement of the 2004 target that the Internet will be the dominant means of enabling 'ready access' to government
• how well agencies are aligned with the Strategy.

The findings are outlined in this report:

Achieving e-government The report summary, methodology and conclusions.

The findings The extent of agencies' alignment with the Strategy; the effectiveness of their websites and metadata [Metadata is information describing information and services.] to provide ready access to information and services; and the State Services Commission's E-government Unit's (EGU) contribution to achieving ready access.

Agency Profiles Profiles of each agency's achievements against the Strategy: their use of the Internet and technology to provide information and services externally; an overview of the information technology they're using to improve internal information management; and examples of their current e-government initiatives.

What is e-government?

E-government is about delivering better results by adapting government to the information age and increasing use of the Internet. E-government is about making ongoing improvements to the design, operation, and culture of the public sector, so that it can respond to the changing needs of New Zealanders.

The EGU provides leadership and co-ordination of the Strategy. Its focus is on using technology to support collaboration across government. The EGU works with people and technology across government to establish standards, architectures, governance and management to make New Zealand a world leader in e-government.

Executive summary

By June 2004, Public Service and non-Public Service departments (agencies) were expected to have achieved the Strategy's goals associated with its 2004 target:

The Internet will be the dominant means of enabling ready access to government.

This report reviews how well agencies have achieved this target. It shows that agencies have met this target and many are well on their way to achieving the Strategy's target for 2007.

The Government has identified three outcomes that characterise successful e-government:

1. convenience and satisfaction

2. integration and efficiency

3. participation.

The Achieving E-government project analysed achievement of these outcomes by:

• assessing agency websites
• appraising the quality of agency metadata records used on the government portal
• consulting with agencies
• reviewing the EGU's contribution
• analysing recent e-government surveys to measure the demand for e-government.
  

Convenience and satisfaction

People will be able to find details of a wide range of government services on the Internet.
- 2004 goal

Agencies are using the Internet to provide an extensive amount of information and some online services to the public. Unlike other information channels, the Internet provides people with access to information and services at anytime, from anywhere. People can access information when it suits them.

A survey commissioned by the EGU in 2003 [Government Online: A National Perspective 2003: New Zealand 2003, Victoria Parr and M. Yamine, TNS.] , concluded that e-government users have high levels of satisfaction. In a 2004 survey, of people who contacted government over the previous year, 28% used the Internet. These people choose to use the Internet to contact government because it was convenient, faster, easy, and a good source of information [Channel Surfing: How New Zealanders Access Government, September 2004, Dr Cate Curtis, Dr Bruce Curtis, Prof. Jack Vowles, Auckland UniServices Limited, Auckland.].

The website assessment indicated that 67% of agencies websites are of a 'high' or a 'good' standard. In particular, agencies generally deliver information online very well. The assessment used a version of the e-Gov Watch methodology [For more information: www.e-govwatch.org.nz] adapted to assess ready access. Websites were tested against criteria based on the Government Web Guidelines, e-Gov Watch best practice in web usability, and the information and services that agencies provide.

For some agencies, improving their websites to ensure they are accurate, accessible and up-to-date will make it easier for people to access government information and services online.

The Achieving E-government project assessed agencies' metadata records, which provide access to agency information and services through the all-of-government web portal www.govt.nz, to determine their contribution to ready access. The portal provides the public with a single point of online entry to government information and services. It gives the public access based on their needs, rather than having to know which agency to contact.

The assessment concluded that the portal enables ready access to a wide range of agencies' information and services, whether available online or offline. Metadata records are generally of a high quality. Several agencies have exemplary metadata records that are accurate, well written, up-to-date and provide good coverage of their information and services.

Most agencies are improving back-office systems such as revamping intranets to provide more relevant and tailored information for staff; introducing electronic document management systems; and sharing information and data with other agencies. Some agencies are introducing mobile computing, dramatically improving access to information for staff working away from their offices. Agencies are using internet technologies to improve traditional service delivery channels.

Integration and efficiency

Agencies will begin to integrate services through the use of common e-government 'foundations' (technologies, standards and policies). Agencies will be more citizen - and results - oriented in the way they design services.
- 2004 goal

Agencies are increasingly designing their services around the needs of customers. Portals enable information to be tailored for the needs of the user, and are increasingly used to integrate services and information for individuals.

While some sectors are more advanced than others, the Internet and networks are increasingly used to automate information exchange between agencies, removing the need for paper forms and other manual processes.

Several initiatives are underway to provide integrated online services so that people do not need to contact multiple agencies or websites to complete related transactions. Instead, people will be able to visit a single website to provide information that is then distributed to relevant agencies.

Agencies are adopting information-sharing standards, such as the e-Government Interoperability Framework (e-GIF). This helps them to share information and data more effectively and enables different agencies to bundle services together to meet people's needs.

The number of electronic data-sharing agreements permitted by the Privacy Commissioner has grown from 20 in 1995 to 70 in June 2004, and this upward trend is expected to continue over the next few years.

Many agencies have modified their information strategies to fit with the Strategy's targets for 2007 and 2010. Most agencies are improving their back-office systems to ensure that they can provide more effective online information and services to the public.

Participation

Government agencies will be making better use of the Internet to inform the public of what is happening in government and of opportunities to be involved in government processes. Agencies will be learning ways to make use of the Internet to consult people about policy development, and service design and delivery.
- 2004 goal

Agencies are using their websites to make it easier for people to participate in government. People can use agency websites to access consultation documents, find news and current activities, volunteer, and attend seminars. While some agencies provide very clear and direct access to information about how to participate, all agencies should ensure that consultation documents and opportunities for people to get involved in government are prominently displayed on websites. Email subscriptions are an effective way for agencies to keep subscribers informed about opportunities to participate in government.

The EGU's policy programme includes a project to determine how e-government can improve the opportunities for people to participate in government.

E-government surveys

The Achieving E-government project reviewed ready access to government information and services primarily from a supply perspective. However, a demand perspective is equally relevant. Several e-government surveys during the past year have provided invaluable information about the demand for online information and services. Survey results indicate that a lack of public awareness about the wealth of government information available on the Internet is a significant area to be addressed.

When respondents to the Channel Surfing survey were asked to name e-government information and services that they would like to access online, they frequently suggested information and services already provided online. Over a third of survey respondents who had not used the Internet to interact with government, did not know they could do so.

The lack of public awareness suggests that either people simply do not know what is available online, or that they are unable to locate the relevant website or the relevant information and services on a website. The draft Digital Strategy, co-ordinated by the Ministry of Economic Development, includes plans for the EGU to raise awareness of e-government and the information and services available online. Agencies also have a role in ensuring that their websites are accessible, easy to use, and deliver information and services effectively. This, with more activity to raise awareness, can be expected to increase the use of e-government.

Despite 65-75% of New Zealanders using the Internet, surveys reiterate that some people have reduced access to online information and services because they do not have ready access to the Internet [Government Online: A National Perspective 2003: New Zealand 2003. See also Channel Surfing: How New Zealanders Access Government]. Just under a third of respondents in the Channel Surfing survey who did not use e-government cited a lack of computer equipment as the reason for non-use.