National government's Internet gateway aims to bring information and services to South African citizens via the Web. It is divided into two halves: the information portal at www.info.gov.za and the services portal at www.services.gov.za.
According to the International Marketing Council for South Africa Web site, the government Web service offers "... updating information on government contacts, departments, events and projects, as well the latest government speeches, statements, notices, tenders and consultative documents". It adds: "In each case, services are organised intuitively, according to user need rather than place within a bureaucratic structure."
That initiative will in time incorporate wireless devices such as cellphones, public information terminals, ATMs and multi-purpose community centres.
Already available is eFiling from South African Revenue Services (SARS) that allows "... electronic submission of tax returns and payments by taxpayers and tax practitioners".
Citizens can already perform some transactions with government systems and will be able to do even more in the future. These range from pension payouts, payment of taxes and housing subsidies to birth and death registrations.
At local level the provincial government of the Western Cape uses technology to ensure that: "... the correct information reaches its target quickly (both internally and externally)". It uses a range of technologies, from the Web to e-mail, cellphones, geographical information systems, scenario planners and accounting systems to ensure improved public service.
The City of Johannesburg is planning a four-phase, 12-month to three-year e-government programme with much internally-focused and a little citizen-focused work being done that acknowledges: "... a strong, integrated back-end is the foundation for providing better consumer services".
But, as in the corporate world, good data is the key to success.
As in the corporate world, good data is the key to success.
Mervyn Mooi, director of Knowledge Integration Dynamics (KID)
That data comes from a number of sources. At the first level of e-government, service data captured by departments will have to be cleansed and maintained. As the level of service progresses so the data quality must improve.
The later stages of government's e-service will require cross-departmental and inter-ministry co-operation that will itself necessitate a single head driving the programme. Without that, as in the corporate world, government can expect the programme to break down and then collapse unless remedied. It's a key best practice in the management of information quality.
Elections 2009 is a key event for government. It will seek timely and accurate data for the event. There is likely to be an increase in demand for services, particularly from the Department of Home Affairs, in the run-up to the election.
The South African national census is one method for government to gather information, but it is conducted only once every 10 years now. The country sees significant change in a five-year span, so that data is likely to be highly unreliable the more it ages. Since a street address has not yet been allocated to every single household in the country, it is suspect at best to begin with.
The best method for securing data is to adopt the same standards and best practices that the corporate world applies. That will deliver a raft of benefits, not least of which are the cost savings that come from good, clean data. Internal efficiency is another, such as SARS's eFiling initiative has demonstrated.
In fact, that demonstrative service has made it more convenient than ever to file tax returns because they can now be done 24-hours per day and every day of the year. Any payments can be made electronically, people and businesses save costs through extended VAT payment deadlines, there are fewer late payment penalties because payments go through on the exact date, clients have a full history of submissions, payments and electronic correspondence, almost instantaneous communication with SARS, critically there are fewer manual accounting errors and the rebate cycle is quicker.
Those benefits make a difference to the citizens and masters that SARS serves. Other government departments can climb aboard that train and by effectively managing the cross-departmental and inter-ministry interactions, far-ranging benefits can be enjoyed by government and citizens alike. Without it, though, taxpayers' money will just be wasted.
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