Understanding e-Government project trajectories from an actor-network perspective

A number of models have been offered to help explain the trajectories of e-Government projects: their frequent failures and their rarer successes. Most, though, lack a sense of the political interaction of stakeholders that is fundamental to understanding the public sector. This paper draws on actor-network theory to provide a perspective that is used to explain the trajectory of an e-Government case study. This perspective is found to provide a valuable insight into the local and global actor-networks that surround e-Government projects. The mobilisation, interaction and disintegration of these networks underpins the course of such projects, and can itself be understood in relation to network actor power: not through a static conception of power over others but through the dynamic-enacted concept of power to. As well as providing a research tool for analysis of e-Government project trajectories, the localglobal networks approach also offers insights into e-Government leadership as a process of network formation and maintenance; and into the tensions between network stabilisation and design stabilisation. © 2007 Operational Research Society Ltd. All rights reserved

Using Actor-Network Theory to Analyze E-Government Implementation in Developing Countries

The implementation issues leading to successful application of information and communication technologies (ICT) is a well-researched area in the information systems literature. But there is little research work of this nature that is theoretically based and undertaken in the field of development informatics/ICT4D. Within this field, an important focus for any theoretically based study could be successful application of ICT in the public sector. This focus is taken in this paper because e-government is regarded by international financing institutions as a core component of the public sector reform programs that are currently reinventing government in developing countries. It is believed that key goals of the good governance agenda¿increased efficiency, improved resource management, and increased accountability¿will be engendered by the application of ICT. This paper presents actor-network theory (ANT) as a framework for understanding the processes of implementing e-government in developing countries. Drawing particularly on the work of Michel Callon and John Law, it applies this theory to a longitudinal study of the public expenditure management information systems supporting the fiscal reform program in Sri Lanka. Specific findings about the global and local networks that have shaped this set of e-government applications are presented. The conclusion is drawn that the application of ICT is an inherently political process and that a successful outcome requires continuous incremental action and improvisation to address the ongoing issues as they emerge. The paper identifies operational challenges in applying ANT that can be overcome by taking a more comprehensive analytical approach. Overall, ANT is seen as having a potentially wide area of application and being a promising theoretical vehicle for development informatics researc

Networks of Influence : Evaluating a Fiscal Reform E-Government Project in Sri Lanka From An Actor-Network Perspective

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The promotion of e-governance in developing countries : reflections on e-government in two Asia-Pacific countries

The adoption of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) has turned the spotlight onto wider goals than that of economic growth, even though this remains the basic tenet of the development effort. It is now recognised that equitable growth, poverty reduction, universal access to health and education, peace and stability are also key targets. The public sector management function is one of the main vehicles through which the relationship between the state, civil society and the private sector is realised. It is therefore a vital means towards achieving these higher-order development goals. This paper is constructed on the premise that good governance is important. Improving efficiency in public sector management, by reducing costs and eradicating corruption, releases resources that can be directed towards the MDGs and ensures that scare resources are not misdirected away. Increasing transparency and accountability in public sector institutions closes the democratic and political gaps highlighted in the Millennium Declaration and improving responsiveness to citizens’ needs promotes the sustainability of MDG achievements.Any public administration reform programme will typically include ICTs as being central to the performance improvement effort. E-government impacts on governance and e-governance can indeed contribute to the achievement of the MDGs – but this need not necessarily be the case. Good governance is not just about the way the executive branch of government (the public administration) goes about the business of governing. It is about political parties, parliament, the judiciary, the media, the private sector and civil society – and, in developing countries, the way that international financing institutions relate to national government. Government, in terms of its overall responsibility for national development, is dependent on the governance qualities of the other institutional actors as well as on its own integrity.There is no universally acknowledged governance policy for public sector management. Each country needs to decide on its own economic and social priorities and the best people to hold government to account are those who live in the country and are most affected by its decisions. Government agendas that include the MDGs’ focus on reducing inequalities and ensuring that support reaches those who need it most must be judged with the relevant information to hand. The means by which these governance processes are being managed and how these are being supported by ICT are examined with reference to two countries in the Asia-Pacific region with which the authors have some familiarity

Inter-governmental Collaborative Networks for Digital Government Innovation Transfer – Structure, Membership, Operations

Part 8: Collaborative Government and Social PoliciesInternational audienceDigital government refers to the transformation of government organizations and their relationships with citizens, business and each other through digital technology. It entails digital innovation in processes, services, organizations, policies, etc. which are increasingly developed and tested in one country and transferred, after adaptation, to other countries. The process of innovation transfer and the underlying information and knowledge sharing increasing take place through networks. The aim of this study is to identify various forms of such networks, their structures, membership criteria and modes of operation. The study relies on the analysis of literature on innovation transfer, collaborative networks and inter-governmental collaboration, and a survey of existing inter-governmental networks for digital government innovation transfer. The key finding is that such networks are a growing form of international collaboration and an instrument in global economy