Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
Authoritarian regimes in Central Asia … have been actively promoting a host of e-
government initiatives. But the reason why they pursue such modernization is not because
they want to shorten the distance between the citizen and the bureaucrat but because they
see it as a way to attract funds from foreign donors (the likes of IMF and the World Bank)
while also removing the unnecessary red-tape barriers to economic growth.
Seen in this light, the implementation of e-government in Central Asia acquires far
more sinister overtones, one motivated by international, not domestic, priorities.
5.3.7 Middle East
Turkey's e-government efforts, which arose in tandem with its hopes of entry into
the European Union, have been used, among other things, to improve public
management, minimize duplication of efforts, distribute public payments, solicit
corporate bids and issue contracts, collect customs duties and some types of taxes,
and enable digital job hunting (Çayhan
2008
). Because the government has pri-
oritized corporate needs over those of households, however, the resources directed
at schools, households, and marginalized social groups have been relatively small.
E-government in the Arab world, where it generates more hype than reality, is
in its infancy. Major barriers to its successful implementation include these
countries' relatively low literacy and penetration rates, lack of technical skills
among civil servants, a ''brain drain'' from the public to the private sector, lack of
government financial commitment and systematic coordination of efforts, and
unstable, often corrupt, administrative hierarchies with high rates of personnel
turnover. Frequently e-government is viewed as cosmetic and complementary to
existing, paper-based means of administration rather than as the basis of a thor-
ough reworking of the public administrative apparatus (Salem
2006
). Several
countries, including Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, and Tunisia, have laun-
ched government portals that offer free e-mail accounts and some electronic bills
payments. For example, the Egyptian government site, alhokoma.gov.eg provides
information but not interactive services. Egyptian schools that have attempted to
include distance learning via the Web have encountered formidable bureaucratic
obstacles and hide-bound teachers with little enthusiasm for innovation (Warsc-
hauer
2003
). Tunisia offers several services through its portal, bawaba.gov.tn,
including income tax payments, job searches, and building applications. By
increasing the probability of discovery, e-government may lower levels of cor-
ruption, enhance accountability, circumvent dictatorial leadership, and by making
government records more open, may empower citizens to challenge arbitrary
government actions. Dubai pioneered an e-government portal in 2001,
www.dubai.ae
,
which allows access to services and payment of bills Kalathil and
Boas (
2003
). The Saudi state set up Web browsers to carry prayers from Mecca
and Medina, and established a web portal to facilitate processing of paperwork for
those visiting Islamic holy sites.
