Evolving e-government benchmarking to better cover technology development and emerging societal needs

Abstract

Many international e-government benchmarks seek to measure progress towards various versions of a digital society, and in this endeavor include a component of e-government. But because comparable international e-government data are scarce, most reports rely on the United Nations E-Government Development Index, specifically its Online Service Index as a benchmark. However, this assessment only captures national level initiatives at a broad level and does not link evaluation to outcomes and impacts, i.e. e-government performance relative to investment. This paper briefly reviews the current UN framework and assesses how it can evolve to meet new demands, such as calls to better connect investments to policy goals, and evolving user behavior. It also places this in the context of new technology trends, like mobile and social media which have not yet been fully embraced by e-government but which are likely to become increasingly important. Similarly, important trends in benchmarking and in benchmarking tools are surveyed. For example, is it possible to measure outcomes in a cost effective manner? What might be the role of non-UN data and of web metrics and social media analytics? How could relevant data and other information be better presented to countries and decision-makers in order to strengthen the goal of using the UN survey to support learning and improvement? In this context, the paper outlines the next feasible steps which the UN and similar benchmarks might adopt, including how the framework might be applied to local level assessments.