In order to offer a true electronic service delivery capability, local councils need to have a plethora of technological elements in place; only then can they offer a holistic electronic service to their constituents.
That's according to Neil Cave, Portfolio Manager, e-Government Solutions of Software AG South Africa, who says although the required technologies can be acquired individually, a single integrated solution tailored specifically for e-government will be more cost-effective and reduce the risks associated with integrating diverse packages.
"Also, the list of applications which local councils should consider is quite extensive," he points out. "It ranges from Web content management (WCM) to electronic records and document management (ERDM), citizen relationship management (CRM), workflow and business process management (BPM), and management reporting."
In addition, local councils need to be able to integrate with other government information systems, incorporate other communication channels into the process, have a single interface for use by government staff and citizens via the Internet, intranet or portal, and have predefined workflows for common local government processes.
"By far the greatest potential for delivering electronic services lies in the Internet via e-government portals or gateways that provide instant access to information and interaction with government," Cave says.
So what does it take to harness available channels such as call centres, TV and e-mail as well as technology and experience in central e-government projects to meet the objectives of e-government service delivery in local government?
The challenges include integrating the disparate applications mentioned above, as well as information from existing legacy systems. This often demands the purchase of integration middleware and expensive integration skills.
The goods news is that there are companies with the experience and expertise to deliver practical, affordable solutions. Software AG, for example, has implemented solutions for government entities worldwide for more than 30 years. Its latest offering is the Integrated electronic Services Framework (ISF).
"The ISF incorporates information management, business process management and workflow capability, citizen relationship management and integration capability through a single Web-based front-end application," Cave explains. "On top of this Software AG is able to provide thousands of pre-defined complex workflows and service processes modelled from more than 40 local government entities in Europe, many of which can be re-used completely or slightly modified for local conditions."
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