Speaking through Ms Sirra Ndow, the UNDP resident coordinator, Ms Chinwe Dike noted that The Gambia has experienced significant development in the IT sector, a situation which has prepared the adequate and necessary environment for the launch of the e-Government project. According to her, “the enabling environment has been created through the provision of necessary legal and policy framework, and the implementation of various innovative initiatives and programs.”
She enumerated these to include the enactment of the Information & Communication Act and the Public Utilities and Regulatory Act; development and adoption of the National Information and Communication policy; the development of the e-government implementation strategy and action plan, as well as the recent launch of the official government web portal.
According to Ms. Dike, all these initiatives have been coordinated jointly by The Gambia government, the Ministry of Information, Communication and Communication Infrastructure and donor agencies such as the Islamic Development Bank, World Bank, the UNECA, UNDP and the private sector.
“Recognizing the importance of ICT in the socioeconomic development of the country and the pivotal role e-Governance can play in the attainment of the MDG-based PRSP II, UNDP supported MOICI to implement a project with prioritized interventions.”
According to the UNDP coordinator, intervention had focused on the upgrading of MOICI’s LAN infrastructure to enhance its leadership and coordinating role in the formulation and implementation of e-Government initiatives; the design and development of the government’s web portal wherein 22 government agencies have already been included and there have been practical training for different focal persons on web portal administration, maintenance and development of web templates for government agencies. Other areas of interventions have also been e-Government Data Centre and a Web Portal Unit at the MOICI.
She further said that there is ongoing training and capacity development for MOICI staff to enhance their skills while MOICI has also been supporting the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to upgrade its IT infrastructure and improve communications between the Ministry and its diplomatic missions.
“This project has contributed in assisting government to improve efficiency in its internal government operation and public service delivery. It also allows government to provide for open and transparent processes as well as greater citizen participation and involvement,” she said.
According to her, the e-Government implementation strategy and action plan served as the basis for the development of the e-Government program 2010-2015. She added that the full-blown project proposal aims to provide the basis for all government ICT related interventions, with the objectives of achieving effectiveness, increased productivity and cost efficiency. This, she said, comprises of four phases, identifies proposed strategies to be pursued, management arrangements, and provides a monitoring and evaluation framework.
Also addressing the forum, Mr. Yankuba Touray, deputy permanent secretary at the Ministry of Information and Communication thanked the UNDP for paving the way to develop the ‘critical’ project proposal. “Knowing the importance of this document, UNDP approved the inclusion of this activity in its project entitled “Support to National e-Government Strategy” of which MOICI is the implementing agency.
He noted that under the assistance of UNECA last year and through UNDP’s active participation, the MOICI was able to complete the implementation strategy and action plan of the fourth pillar of National Information and Communication Infrastructure (NICI) which is the long-term "e-Government Implementation Strategy and Action Plan". According to him, this project is long-term because it encompasses four implementation phases which started in 2010 and will extend to 2025.
“The document was comprehensively developed through the vast experience and expertise of the UNECA consultants with the inputs from the Gambian stakeholders. It is comprehensive because it discusses general and technical specification of all components that would make up the e-government programme i.e., physical, infrastructure & platform, software including applications, human resource and systems & procedures,” he said.
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Quelle/Source: TODAY, 29.03.2011
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