Developing a Generic Framework for E-Government

Electronic government (e-government) initiatives are pervasive and form a significant part of government investment portfolio in almost all countries around the world. However, understanding of what is meant by e-government is still nascent and becomes complicated because the construct means different things to different people. Consequently, the conceptualization and implementation of e-government programs are diverse and are often difficult to assess and compare across different contexts of application. This paper addresses the following key question: Given the wide variety of visions, strategic agendas, and contexts of application, how may we assess, categorize, classify, compare, and discuss the e-government efforts of various government administrations? In answering this question, we propose a generic e-government framework that will allow for the identification of e-government strategic agendas and key application initiatives that transcend country-specific requirements. In developing the framework, a number of requirements are first outlined. The framework is proposed and described; it is then illustrated using brief case studies from three countries. Finally, findings and limitations are discussed.