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A government framework that applies and uses the internet and the "www" to provide information and services to its citizens is known as e-government. Richard Heeks defines e-government as the use and application of IT by government and other public sector organizations. Thus, e-government encompasses more than just internet technology. Nepal has been implementing the idea of e-government for a long time—long before the term was coined. By making traditional government more accessible, transparent, efficient, and accountable, it can be used to replace it. In general, Nepal's experience with implementing e-government has not been positive.
The process of reconstructing Nepal into a federal state has presented additional difficulties for the government in terms of putting plans and policies into action as well as providing effective public services using contemporary technology. Even though mobile devices, the internet, and online media are immensely useful, the country is still not prepared for e-government at this time. The nation's EGDI status indicates that it is still in the early stages of e-Government adoption.
Nonetheless, Nepal is making progress toward e-government implementation thanks to the EGMP and ICT policy. Due to a number of significant obstacles, including those that are organizational, financial, human, technological, organizational, and regulatory in nature; others include: failing to set aside a specific fund for e-government; low levels of citizen awareness and consciousness; a lack of e-literacy; inadequate professional and quality ICT education; inadequate infrastructure and connectivity; cybercrimes and web security; the digital divide; resistance to change on the part of government officials and organizations; a lack of leadership; poor coordination and collaboration between various ministries, organizations, and departments; lack of strategic plan and policies; and political issues, poverty, and corruption, among other issues.
In Nepal, the path of ICT (information and communication technology) and e-governance has followed a contemplative trajectory. However, a lack of understanding among important stakeholders within the e-governance framework has hindered progress with the deployment of e-governance programs and tools. It can be said that Nepal's performance in e-governance is still low when compared to other nations, despite these efforts. As per the UN E-Government Development Index (EGDI), Nepal is ranked 125th out of 193 nations, with a score of 0.5117 out of 1, indicating the preparedness and competence of the country to employ ICT for public service delivery. This suggests that Nepal's human resources, telecommunications infrastructure, and online service delivery still have a lot of space for growth.
When we dip down in analyzing the challenges associated with the implementation of e-governance in Nepal; one such challenge is digital literacy, as many people lack the technical skills required to use e-government services efficiently. Furthermore, high-speed internet and ICT infrastructure are not available in all regions of Nepal, and it is prohibitively expensive. The need for multilingual e-government applications is another challenge. For instance, many language scripts, typefaces, keyboards, and software versions used in Nepal are not compatible with each other, making communication and cooperation between government departments difficult. There is also a variation in degree levels of ICT understanding across government agencies, leading to difficulties in coordinating information. Moreover, the low rate of internet penetration hampers Nepal's progress towards better e-governance services. Finally, Nepal faces security issues with bandwidth, reliability, and cyber-attacks, affecting the quality and trust of e-governance services. Hence, these challenges must be addressed to successfully implement e-government solutions in Nepal and improve public service delivery.
Although e-government services have been established, they have not gained widespread adoption and use. To improve e-governance in Nepal, it is necessary to improve digital infrastructure, provide and improve digital literacy, make e-government services available in multiple languages, address cybersecurity concerns, and ensure that the government departments are working together in a synchronized manner. There is a need for the Nepal Government to design policies and initiatives that promote ICT awareness to citizens, build digital infrastructure, establish an e-government governance framework, improve transparency and accountability, and promote trust in e-governance by ensuring security and data privacy. While the implementation of e-governance faces many challenges, Nepal has an opportunity to leverage ICT to improve public service access and delivery and address socioeconomic development challenges.
Because e-governance still has a number of hurdles that prevent individuals with disabilities from effectively utilizing it to the same extent as the general able-bodied population, ICT-enabled public services should be easily accessible to them. The majority of the material on the national, provincial, and municipal government websites is written in English, which poses a language barrier and may hinder the usage of e-governance services. Given that there are 123 official languages in Nepal, material accessible and provided through e-governance should, in proportion to the eleven language divisions, reflect the views of the whole people. Security lapses should be avoided as they jeopardize ICT integrity and call into question the legitimacy of e-governance programs.
The adoption of e-governance is also hampered by the digital gap, which is brought about by differences in ICT access. These differences can be attributed to a variety of variables, including class, race, age, culture, and geography. In order to counteract the negative effects of the digital divide, more multipurpose community centers need to be opened. Training and development in education become an important instrument in the fight against the digital divide. Without access to energy, the internet, or information technology, e-governance cannot be successfully implemented. Thus, a robust technology infrastructure is required for e-governance to be fully operational and effective as a powerful support system for the delivery of public services.
In conclusion, the implementation of e-governance in Nepal could lead to significant improvements in public service delivery and address development challenges. However, the challenges faced by e-governance in Nepal are significant, such as language, literacy, and digital infrastructure. Hence, the Government should prioritize creating multilingual, highly accessible services, improving digital infrastructure, and ensuring that government departments are working together in a synchronized manner, leveraging policy to promote awareness and build ICT literacy, address security concerns, and promote public trust. By doing so, e-governance in Nepal can become an effective tool to deliver public services more efficiently in a way that engages and benefits the public.