Industry Canada has set itself a Government On-Line target date of 2003 — a full two years ahead of the rest of the federal government. This is really just the beginning of a larger, ongoing transformation of government service delivery. Beyond GOL, the richer concept of e-government includes integrated service delivery and engages citizens and clients in the development and evolution of democratic institutions and policies through the application of technologies. Ultimately, it is a new form of engagement that benefits the citizen, business and the government itself.
We know that to achieve tangible benefits for clients and businesses, e-government must:
· Be transformative — moving toward service re-engineering and integration, over time, where it makes sense;
· Be shaped by Canadians’ input and constant feedback through online policy consultations;
· Provide greater access to government wherever people may be — transparency, flexibility and speed in obtaining the knowledge to pursue economic and social benefits; and
· Align service delivery across federal, provincial and municipal governments.
Industry Canada is focusing on four key technologies that will provide the foundation for the infrastructure that will be needed to provide the requirements for e-government. These include:
· E-business technologies — such as XML software, for example — to support governments in building online relationships with Canadians by supporting transactions and services.
· Portal architecture — integrating the financial, human resource and knowledge systems at the desktop level for employees.
· Content management systems — which allow organizations to collect, classify and deal with the dramatic growth in information. These systems also open the door to personalization inside the government and with clients.
· Broadband — prepares the way for multimedia access to support online training and other high-end services.
All this reflects the fact that businesses in Canada are embracing the Internet. In 2001, fully 71 per cent of them used the Internet, up from 63 per cent in 2000. Firms that used the Internet accounted for 96 per cent of economic activity, and, according to Statistics Canada, more than nine of 10 businesses with 20 employees or more used the Internet in 2001. However, for small companies, the Internet remains largely a tool for communication and information gathering, with only 21 per cent owning a Web site and six per cent selling online. With Forrester Research projecting a global e-business market of US$4 trillion by 2004, there will be serious competitive and economic consequences for Canadian small businesses that do not adopt e-strategies.
The federal government is developing online programs specifically with the small business community in mind. Business Gateway.ca, for example, is the “go-to” portal that provides services for both start-ups and existing businesses. The site, which organizes government information and services by topic from across government, also offers e-forms and services from across jurisdictions.
Looking ahead, business clients will expect to use a common identifier to deal with all levels of government in a seamless way — calling for common data standards across jurisdictions. E-government will also empower small businesses to influence government policy development by participating in online consultations on business policy and legislation.
We can also see how the e-government world will feature wireless applications for business, such as instant messaging or PDA licence applications. And there are strong indicators of growth in mobile commerce, or m-commerce — in 2000, more than half of all business enterprises used wireless communications.
Jaime Pitfield is the director general of Government Online at Industry Canada.