Why Nigeria
must embrace e-governance
By: Faiza Sahris
In a world that is becoming increasingly digital, the public
sector, and by implication, all organs of government in Nigeria cannot continue
to resist the adoption of digital technology to carry out their services. By
all accounts and from the experiences of countries where this has happened,
e-governance - which refers to the provision of public services via electronic platforms,
has made service delivery faster, cheaper and more effective.
Most Nigerians were introduced to the potentials of digital
technology when the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, put
forward a plan to use electronic-voting machines to register voters prior to the
2011 elections. However, Nigeria’s Information Technology policy which was
adopted in 2001 made provisions for e-governance.
Countries like Russia, Kenya and the Republic of Korea (South
Korea) have made strides in e-governance. Russia uses technology in just about
every sector – healthcare, education, and politics. The Russian Federation is
also ranked by the 2012 United Nations E-Government Survey as one of the seven
leaders in e-government. In Kenya, there is an Information Communication
Technology department that focuses solely on e-governance and its
implementation. The Republic of Korea (South Korea) is ranked number one. Their
e-government activities are the best and the fastest growing in the world.
Nigeria, with its vast bureaucratic networks should be able to look
to these countries as a scheme and begin to restructure its governmental
process. There are major hurdles to overcome, considering the fact that many
Nigerians do not have access to technology, let alone the skills to utilize it.
The first step in creating a system of government that uses new technology in a
country like Nigeria is perhaps an enlightenment campaign, then a training
program that outlines the benefits of e-governance. People must first
understand the benefits of e-governance and realize that it has the potential
to create a more transparent, accountable government with checks and balances
that ensure quality and integrity in all governmental affairs.
Governor Raji Fahola of Lagos State has previously stressed the
effectiveness of e-governance in his state. He said that “e-governance, a
virile strategy to curb corruption in Nigeria, the adoption of e-governance
promotes the best form of participatory democracy as it allows the constituents
direct participation in government activities without being physically present;
re-engineers a new sense of citizenship as the people redefines their needs,
welfare and responsibilities as well as enable the governed to communicate with
their government, participate in government’s policy making and decisions.”
Crushing the bureaucratic nature of the federal government is the
task at hand and e-governance may be the tool that can be used. It may be
Nigeria’s saving grace. This is about providing citizens with an opportunity to
improve government decisions by making them a part of the decisions and
increasing the amount of trust citizens have in government.
When INEC rolled out its e-voting plans, Nigerians from far and
wide never realized that the days of doing things manually have passed away.
Society is changing and in order to move forward, government must change as
well. Imagine a Nigeria where every citizen has a say in the democratic process
and the jobs of politicians are scrutinized. Establishing a more effective
government begins with giving the people power to make their own decisions or a
least making them a part of the country’s decision making process. Using new
technology to tally up votes is only the beginning. Monitoring the way
government interacts with citizens, employees other government agencies means
that foul play could one day be a thing of the past.
Implementing e-governance could create a more informed citizen who
is not only prepared to participate in democracy, but is excited about his/her
contribution to society. Through a strong e-government system, Nigeria can
become a nation that thrives. This is a system that eliminates the use of paper
and improves convenience. A greater level of convenience leads to better
management, which leads to revenue growth and reduced costs.
These kinds of savings could free up resources and allow government
to focus on areas that need more attention. It also simplifies the process of
collecting information for citizens and businesses, which could translate into
a decrease in corruption because public information would be available to all
citizens and there would be no room for manipulation. There are also
eco-friendly benefits; the fact that government activities would be carried out
online makes it possible to cancel that daily commute to the office, consequently
saving natural gas and limiting mankind’s burden on the environment. This is a
win situation for everyone.
