With over 25 years of e-Government developments under its belt, Singapore is now looking to share its experiences through formal exchange programmes as well as the export of local infocomm expertise.

Speaking on Singapore’s e-Government experiences at the 4th Ministerial e-Government Conference in Lisbon, Portugal, in September, Dr Lee Boon Yang, Minister of Information, Communications & the Arts, noted that there are currently about 1,600 e-government services available online 24x7 for businesses and citizens. These range from seeking approval for major building projects to passport renewals to filing income tax returns. Last year, about 160 million transactions on such services were made from a base population of 4.5 million people.

Dr Lee sees possibilities for partnerships between Singapore and European infocomm companies to work with local and city governments in e-government

On the economic front, Singapore sees ICT as a strategic catalyst for the rest of the economy. “By streamlining and simplifying government processes and providing better and faster access to information, we build a pro-enterprise environment, facilitate business growth and improve the lives of our citizens,” said Dr Lee.

He cited the example of the TradeXchange project, which will provide inter-connectivity between commercial and regulatory agencies over a neutral platform for the trade and logistics community. Another example is the Online Business Licensing Services (OBLS) system, a one-stop service that allows entrepreneurs to apply for one or more of the 71 licences from 19 government agencies using a single online form at any one time.

On the social front, Dr Lee elaborated on Singapore’s e-Government efforts to bridge the digital divide and enhance dialogue between Government and citizens through initiatives like the CitizenConnect centres and the REACH (Reaching Everyone for Active Citizenry @ Home) portal.

Singapore is also looking to make better use of mobile phones in the delivery of e-Government services. It has set itself the target of delivering 300 such services by 2008, up from the current 150.

Singapore’s strategy for e-Government includes development of the local infocomm industry, said Dr Lee. Armed with expertise in developing these e-Government solutions, many Singapore infocomm companies are now ready to explore opportunities in the global market, and their solutions have been exported and adopted in diverse markets such as the Middle East, East Asia and Africa.

“I see possibilities for partnerships between Singapore and European infocomm companies to work with local and city governments in e-government,” said Dr Lee.