Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
For the first level (information), Austria offers a sufficient citizen/business information
system with components for Level 2 (communication): the information system help.gv.
With this tool, the first step has been taken in the area of electronic government. This
information system is a classic example of how e-government should be done. Therefore,
some other countries, like Switzerland, have adopted the main ideas of help.gv for developing
their own information systems (Schweizer Bundesrat, 1998). The main ideas of the help.gv
concept are as follows:
•
Creation of a Citizen Information System (divided into about 40 spheres of life): the user
can select from these topics organized in alphabetical order.
•
Creation of a Business Information System (divided into different topics of business
life): Enterprises have the possibility of choosing the appropriate topic for receiving
the wanted information.
•
Combination of the two created information systems within one unique portal. The user
can enter the help.gv portal and can choose whether to enter as a citizen for getting
citizen-related information or entering for getting business-related information.
Within the scope of the citizen information part corresponding to the selected topic, you
can find the appropriate forms for download (information level). But, there is still a media break
in the chain of the processes of this Citizen Information System. Until now, you could
download the form, fill it out, and give it to the corresponding authority, which has to register
your data separately. According to governmental strategies, most mentioned media breaks
should be eliminated until 2003. Having removed these media breaks, the third sort of contact,
the transaction, will be realized (planned for 2005). In addition to the information procurement,
you can contact administrational authorities via email options (communication level). The
Business Information System is organized in the same way as the Citizen Information System.
You can search information corresponding to the appropriate topic, and you can get
information, download forms, and contact administrational authorities. Transactions are
realized partly, too. In Austria, electronic record archives were implemented in 2000, where
all prepared records are available for specific members (Aichholzer, 1998).
Electronic Government in Switzerland
According to the strategies published in the Swiss area of electronic government, there
seems to be a strong dependence on the Austrian concept of help.gov. Therefore, the
description of the Swiss way of dealing with electronic government will be accordingly
shorter than the former sections. The main idea of electronic government is networking all
governmental offers digitally (Lenk, 2000). Especially in federalistic structured countries, like
Switzerland, citizens have to deal with heterogeneous cantons and local governments. In this
case, a networking of all governmental offers is necessary for the functioning of electronic
administration. In 1998, the Swiss government published a Strategy for the Information
Society (Arbeitsgruppe e-government, 1997). One instrument for reaching the targets of the
strategy is the Guichet virtuel. It is a Web portal that will allow customer-oriented and service-
oriented access to the electronic administrational supply at all levels of government
(administration, parliament, courts, union, cantons, and local governments). The Guichet
virtuel is a
planned
Web portal; it will go online at the end of 2002. One aim of the Guichet
virtuel is to improve the relationship between administration and citizens. The Guichet virtuel
will not be a citizens' information system like help.gv is in Austria. Nevertheless, the main
