What, if anything, does e-government have to do with Indonesia?

Placido, Contributor, Jakarta

Would you associate Indonesia with e-government? Perhaps you would not, but local politicians believe that e-government has massive potential to promote economic and social development.

E-government belongs to the same family as e-mail and e- commerce, where the "e" stands for electronic. The concept implies the use of Information Communication Technology like computers and mobile phones, with the objective of providing online services and improving bureaucracy and transparency.

It is also seen as a tool for improving the relationship between citizens and the government, and among government institutions.

Indonesia has not gone "e-mad" overnight. The country actually caught the "e-bug" quite a while ago.

The first step was taken in 1997 with the establishment of Telematika Indonesia, a committee responsible for providing guidelines and recommendations on how to proceed to digitalization.

Despite Indonesia's reputation for political inconsistency, with new leaders scrapping the policies of the previous government, Telematika Indonesia is still alive and kicking.

However, political consistency does little to convince the skeptics on the feasibility of such a project.

Consider these facts: Indonesia remains a country where PC penetration is 1 percent of the population, the Internet is used by 0.5 percent and land-line telephones reach 3.5 percent of the country's population of 220 million.

Infrastructure/access is the main problem facing e-government, but is by no means the only one. The other problems include the relevance of the idea to the Indonesian reality, general public apathy and a lack of human resources, budget and a concerted approach

Dr. Ashwin Sasongko -- secretary to the state minister for research and technology and one of the main men behind the project -- remains enthusiastic about e-government.

"Indonesia is still in the infancy of the project. At the moment we are trying to make the idea of computers appealing to people and drafting the necessary legal framework and guidelines on which to operate."

Through road shows across the archipelago, the government and the private sector has attempted to raise public awareness of the issue. They have staged exhibitions of IT products and also discussions on their potential uses during the road shows.

"People are very curious about computers. There is no age divider; young and old alike gather around to ask questions and to listen. There is definitely a growing curiosity about it," Ashwin said.

But the public's curiosity does not automatically lead to the establishment of e-government, particularly in the absence of Internet access at the institutions concerned. For example, here in Indonesia, only 24 percent of government employees have access to e-mail and there are certain areas in the country that have no access at all.

Regions that have been equipped with digitalized electronic networks will spearhead the implementation of e-government.

"There are 265 regencies and it is obvious that some have better facilities than others. These have been selected and will be used as examples for others to follow," Ashwin said.

In fact, there are now 23 out of 265 regencies preparing e- government networks.

Batam island in Sumatra is one success story. It has one-stop public service where 18 types of civil records and permits can be obtained from one office.

The slimmed down bureaucracy has led to a 250 percent increase in applications from the previous year, especially for permits and ID cards.

However, a lack of capable human resources continues to be a problem in many areas. Not many people throughout the archipelago can turn a computer on, let alone construct or navigate an interactive website.

The trump card of e-government is that it will encourage dialog between the government and the public, which will make the first more accountable and the second more involved in the democratic process.

Theoretically, this can be done through e-mail, by filling in feedback forms on a website or by taking part in a forum discussion.

But how about those who live outside Java, Bali and the main cities in the rest of the country, who are not familiar with Internet? How relevant is e-government to the rest of the country?

"Everywhere in Indonesia there are educated minorities that have access to the Internet. These may be NGOs, government officials or intellectuals. At the moment we have to rely on them and we need their help. They have to work as a link between the government and the people," Ashwin said.

But even to keep a website operating has proven difficult. Out of 369 websites set up by government offices as of last March, only about 85 are still fully operating.

More difficult is to keep the websites updated with useful information for the public.

This seemingly backwardness in information technology is in contrast with the situation in the mid-1970s, when Indonesia had a good reputation for its IT education, particularly at the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB).

Even Malaysia, which has developed into one of Southeast Asia's most advanced countries in terms of IT education and achievement, used to send students to ITB to learn from Indonesians. Now Indonesia looks to Malaysia for IT tips.

"We lost our way a bit, but we are trying to catch up. IT is one of the favorite subjects of young students and with increased demand the schools will follow.

"On Sept. 25, another communications college was opened on the outskirts of Bogor. Also, to train people in IT does not require a massive investment or a very long time compared to other industries, so budget constraints will not slow the process," Ashwin said.

Money is another bone of contention. While it is true that education and putting up websites do not require massive investments, it is also true that in order to reach the population at large, land-line telephones and/or cable have to be installed and this will require a huge investment.

Is Indonesian ready for that? Will it be a priority?

Therefore, the first crucial thing to do is to improve the interministerial approach toward this issue.

This major transformation can only be achieved by coordinating the different entities of the public administration and the private sector. Law, finance, infrastructure planning and human resources management should all pull in the same direction. This is not happening.

PCs in Indonesia are considered a luxury item and are heavily taxed. To make real inroads with the population they should be available at subsidized prices.

Also, home Internet access is prohibitively expensive. At present -- for poorer service -- Indonesians pay more than Europeans or Americans.

Currently, convincing Indonesians of the importance of the Internet revolution is without real meaning because they will not be able to afford it anyway

Indonesia is not alone in its quest for e-government. Many other developing countries see digital as the perfect means for development.

Albania, Jordan, Mozambique and Nigeria are taking part in a project run by Italy, in collaboration with the UN, to facilitate the implementation of e-government. Chile, Tanzania, Mexico, Malaysia and Namibia are among the countries preceded them in the project.

India and Estonia have already achieved some positive results and, for different reasons, they can serve as good examples for Indonesia.

In India, the public benefits from e-government because it provides online information on the government's performance.

Since January 2000, the Central Vigilance Commission, an independent government agency involved in the anticorruption drive, has been publishing online the names of officials suspected of accepting bribes, along with the disciplinary action taken against them. This has helped boost public confidence in the government.

In Estonia, Internet access has been declared "a human right" and through community centers, the country is moving to provide free Internet access to all of its 1.5 million inhabitants.

After all is said and done, our first question remains unanswered: Would you associate e-government with Indonesia?

Though the facts show that real application is farther away than the moon, they cannot deny that the pursuit of the e- revolution (e-commerce, e-business and e-government) is not only an option but a necessity.

The reasons to go digital are both internal and external.

Digital communication is fast, reliable and cost effective. In a country as vast as Indonesia no other means is feasible.

Politically, e-government remains the best tool to support the change to more democratic governance practices.

Its implementation would also facilitate communication between central and local governments, particularly relevant since the decentralization process began in 1999.

Externally, international relations are paperless and the pressure to comply with this is growing. To mention only one example, the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation has given Indonesia a 2010 deadline to introduce digital trading.

As Dr. Ashwin Sasongko said: "E-government in today's Indonesia is a dream, a vision; but you must have this vision to make things happen. Now we have to think, tomorrow we will have to act then assist. Only in this way will we one day reap the benefits."

To help educate the public and officials about e-government, the state minister for communications and information, and the state minister for research and technology, in cooperation with the Italian Embassy, will hold a workshop in Jakarta titled E- Government Leadership, Best Practices and Opportunities. The workshop will take place this Wednesday and Thursday.