Overview
of the government IT infrastructure [6]:
According to the “Implementation of E-Government in
• Improve the performance, credibility and transparency
of the government.
• Provide government products and service electronically.
• Provide services to citizens electronically.
• Improve collaboration between government agencies.
• Improve
• Reduce costs incurred by the government and the private
sector
In an email interview with Bassem Awadallah, who is
currently the Minister of Planning in Jordan, he stated that the implementation
of E-Government is essential is “extremely timely…with all that has been going
on around us, all the Gulf countries have accelerated their E-Government
programs.” In light of this, the
implementation of such project is essential to compete in the region.
However, there are many limitations that hinder the
E-Government project. These limitations are:
1. Financing the E-Government project.
2. Creating a uniform standard between government
agencies. Different agencies are using different computer platforms.
3. Laying out the groundwork for such a project.
Currently there is a digital divide that exists between urban and rural areas.
There are some areas in the country that are not yet familiar with PC’s and
will not be able to utilize E-Government services. Many government agencies
outside the capital city, Amman, are not yet computerized. Therefore, the
introduction of PC’s and upgrading these areas are crucial to the success of
the project.
4. Computer literacy: currently His Majesty King Abdullah
II is undergoing a massive program of teaching computer literacy and English in
public school throughout the kingdom. He is also collecting foreign aid to
introduce PC’s in rural areas.
5. Legislation needs to be overhauled in order to
implement the project. Many laws are outdated, currently hindering the
establishment of E-Government. However, “preparation of e-commerce, e-banking,
and e-signature laws is already underway” (Bassem Awadallah).
According to the “Jordan E-Government: an Implementation
Plan,” which was published by the Economic Consultative Council at the Royal
Palace of Jordan, the project would take the form of government-to-business,
government-to-citizen, and government-to-government. The government-to-business
objective is to attract foreign investment by making it easier for foreign
companies to register and conduct business in Jordan. E-Government will also
focus on the government-to-citizen to make some services available to citizens
via the Internet. To build the backbone of such a project, the various
government agencies need to be connected with one another, thus
government-to-government. These dimensions of E-Government and the limitations
that would hinder their development will be discussed in detail later in this
paper.
The E-Government project aims to place the Jordanian
government into the 21st century. However, there are certain limitations that
would hinder the advancement of the project. Certainly the most important and
critical limitation is the digital divide that currently exists in the kingdom.
Computer literacy exists mainly in Amman and Irbid. The rest of the country
needs to catch up. Utilizing foreign aid to distribute personal computers
throughout the kingdom especially in the rural areas is solving this problem.
There is also a movement towards upgrading government agencies throughout the
country. The most serious step towards eliminating the digital divide is the
addition of information technology responsibilities to the renamed Ministry of
Information and Communications and Technology. The education program of
mandatory computer literacy and English language in public schools and
universities will also eliminate the digital divide.
Financing the E-Government project is yet another
limitation. The government needs to utilize it resources and foreign aid to
finance the project. The project will certainly be worth the money because it
will establish the kingdom as a country fit for investment. It is necessary for
the project to the completed as soon as possible in order to establish a
competitive advantage in the area. UAE and Qatar have already established their
own E-Government projects and it is imperative that Jordan follows suit.
The establishment of a uniform government intranet is
also necessary for the successful implementation of E-Government. Government
agencies traditionally have operated as separate islands. Each agency developed
a computerized system on its own. With the establishment of E-Government and
the renamed Ministry of Information and Communications and Technology, the
various agencies will interact in a meaningful way. The last limitation is the
outdated legislation that stood in the way of the establishment of the project.
However, current legislations are being reviewed and changed by the parliament.
The most important step to overcoming all the obstacles that
stand in the way of E-Government is the continued seriousness and dedication to
the project. His Majesty King Abdullah certainly expresses his dedication for
the establishment of a serious IT sector in Jordan. One of the ways to achieve
that is with the E-Government project. On his personal website, his majesty
outlines the necessary steps to achieving this goal and that they include “new
or amended legislation, necessary government policies, procedures and
incentives that would lead to the growth of this sector, and perhaps more
importantly a will to make them overcome any obstacle in this regard.” (9)
However, E-Government in