They want to replicate in Nepal the rapid economic growth, administrative efficiency and increasing opportunities achieved by some developing nations through ICT.
With a view to specify challenges and chart out future strategy in the field of e-governance, a three-day national stakeholders' workshop 'Modernisation of Nepal Through the Development of ICT and E-Governance' started in the capital Wednesday.
The participants will discuss on the Nepal e-Governance Master Plan prepared by the government in the financial support of Korea IT Industry Promotion Agency. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is providing technical assistance to Nepal for the preparation of investment projects to enhance e-governance in line with this master plan. The stakeholders will put forth recommendations on this plan and share experiences about the use of ICT at the central and local governances.
Like the ambitious IT Policy chalked out more than five years ago, this master plan envisages in creating paperless bureaucracy by 2011 to establish good governance, improve service delivery and efficiency through the fully utilisation of ICT. It calls for expanding infrastructure, generating human resources, increasing investment in research and development (R&D) and simplifying the cumbersome and traditional working style bureaucracy.
Inaugurating the workshop, Speaker Subash Chandra Nemwang said that e-governance would open the door for wider participation of people in economic and social processes.
Nemwang said the application of ICT enhances transparency, accountability and service delivery.
"E-governance is the prioritised agenda of Nepal government but at the moment we are focused on restoring a lasting peace through the elections to constituent assembly," added the speaker.
Minister for Environment, Science and Technology Mahanta Thakur emphasised on the development of infrastructure in the nook and corner of the country.
Thakur reiterated the governments' commitment to promote ICT by introducing the ICT friendly policies and boosting the investment friendly atmosphere.
Vice Chairman of High Level Commission for Information Technology (HLCIT) Saroj Devkota said that the stakeholders would work out a sustainable model of e-governance in Nepal by soliciting their views on the master plan along with sharing experiences with the foreign participants about the ICT developments in South Korea and India.
Dr Chang-hak Choi, member of Presidential Committee on Government Innovation and Decentralisation, and Director General of e-Gov. Bureau, South Korea and Indian IT expert J. Satyanarayana highlighted five successful projects each carried out in the ICT field in their respective countries.
President of Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) professor Said Irandoust said that AIT, the Bangkok-based the global technology leader, had been helping Nepal for human resource development.
"The AIT can ably partner with Nepal since it has the proven capacity and agility to mobilise and link together a wide range of international partners, all key experts in their respective fields, collaborating together in research, teaching and development activities," said Irandoust.
He said that the Nepal government was positive towards the AIT's interest to open its branch in Nepal.
Organised by the HLCIT and ADB jointly, the meeting is expected to come up with concrete views in implementing the e-governance master plan that is a part of Nepal's efforts to put it in the global IT map.
Quelle/Source: The Rising Nepal, 19.04.2007
