Paraphrasing a Nancy Sinatra number to talk about effective e-government might seem a bit of a stretch, but at a time when South African citizens are taking to the streets to protest about government’s failure to deliver on promises, lines like “someone else is gettin’ all your best” and “you keep samin’ when you oughta be changin’” just keep coming to mind.

Since the first edition of Effective e-Government appeared in 2006 the need for service delivery and the role that technology can play in achieving that effectively, inclusively and efficiently has remained a constant in terms of the challenges we face in this country. And while e-government has scored well in some departments, under-achievement and downright failure in other areas is diluting this success.

Revelations that some municipalities are consistently failing to spend their budget allocations due to skills shortages contrast with highly publicised reports of expensive websites and luxury ministerial vehicles, and this is only the tip of the challenge iceberg. Pointing out that the high-end vehicles are permitted under government guidelines misses the point entirely. Citizen trust in government and the public service is plummeting. According to the Public Service Commission (PSC), trust in national government declined from 69% in 2004 to 52% in 2007. As comedian Irwin Corey says, if we don’t change direction soon, we’ll end up where we’re going… The best way for any government to shake off the air of suspicion and dissatisfaction with which too many citizens view them is through service delivery. A 2009 presentation to the UN on the topic of building trust in government placed public sector capacity as the bedrock upon which such trust is built. Among the stepping stones: Efficiency, effectiveness, dependability, integrity and transparency.

As the PSC has pointed out, the 2010 World Cup represents a gilt-edged opportunity for government and the public service to transform service delivery. Resources allocated to technologies and process improvements tailored towards the big event could just as easily have been spent on other areas that would yield equal – if not greater – social benefits. Accordingly, the PSC says it’s vital that we make this diversion of resources count by using the momentum gained through initiatives such as streamlining Ports of Entry processes (as Home Affairs is doing ahead of 2010) to address existing performance gaps and to “build lasting institutional capacity to function effectively, even beyond the event itself.”

The time for talking about it is past. Are you ready boots? Start walkin’...

Senior writer: ITWeb Informatica