Barriers to Electronic Government and Digital Inclusion 1
Adela Mesa 1 and Pedro Martínez‐Monje 2 1 Department of Political Science and Administration, Faculty of Social Sciences and
Communication, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain 2 Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences and Communication, University of the
Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain adela. mesa @ ehu. es pedromanuel. martinez @ ehu. es
Abstract: New channels have been created from the idea of electronic governance which allow access to and use of the electronic administration, the electronic services and also electronic participation so that the population can take part in the issues of public policy which have up to now been within the exclusive scope of the governmental institutions. The possibilities offered by this form of governance cannot be dissociated from the development of a digital citizenship which can unfold through participation in the mechanisms and structures of electronic governance and e‐administration, although there are barriers which prevent the digital access or digital inclusion of some sectors of the population. The barriers to the development of E‐Government are due to the real or perceived legal, social, technological or institutional characteristics which act against the development of the electronic administration; either due to the fact that they prevent the demand, hinder the users of the electronic Administration, or prevent the offer from the organizations in the public sector when it comes to providing electronic Administration services. Specifically, we are going to deal with both the barriers which are related to Internet skills and use by the population and also the e‐government policies which have been developed, and all within the field of health. As regards the first group of barriers mentioned, we refer to issues like e‐ learning, the different uses of Internet, the use of the electronic Administration, etc. As regards the e‐government policies, one must take into account that various actors have an influence on them( politicians, technicians, users, etc.), as well as specific actors in the area of health( doctors, health personnel in general and services personnel). In the latter, one must take into consideration that health one of the pillars of the Welfare State is in the firing line in these times economic crisis and budget reductions. As such, the e‐health policies have ‐ even more so if possible a central role in dealing with a twofold challenge: on the one hand, to contribute to the effectiveness and efficiency of the service through the introduction of the ICTs, without this leading to social segregation or exclusion; and on the other hand acting with criteria of economy and streamlining of resources. Along these lines, in the area of health in Spain there are various programmes( digital clinical history, preliminary medical appointment in the Internet, electronic prescription, etc.) which are in different phases of implementation. These plans are modernizing instruments but they can also have exactly the opposite effect by generating new social inequalities by leading to situations of social vulnerability and digital exclusion. This work seeks to provide a reflection on this process in order to explore inclusive strategies in the e‐health initiatives in Spain and which could help other countries to find a new public governance process.
Keywords: e‐government barriers, e‐governence, digital inclusion, e‐health, e‐policies
1. Introduction
In the last two decades before the financial crisis the different public Administrations – influenced by the leadership exercised by different European or global bodies – saw great potential in adopting and developing the ICTs to improve their own structures, operation and even their image.
This led to extensive literature being published dealing with different matters but which could be summarised as the concept of electronic government and the three dimensions covered in its definition, in other words, and according to the definition of the Gartner Group, we consider“ electronic government” to be the use of the ICT to improve and optimise the provision of public services, citizen participation in consultation processes and the formulation of public policies. In recent years a lot of resources( financial, personnel, etc.) have been dedicated to the development of electronic public services( e‐services in general), there have been various cases of democratic participation via the ICT( e‐democracy) and, in a more incipient manner, the complex societies are increasingly using the ICT for governance processes( e‐governance)( Mesa, 2007).
1 This study has been prepared within the framework of the“ Barreras al Gobierno Electrónico. El empleo de las TIC en la Política Sanitaria Autonómica. Un enfoque desde las Relaciones Intergubernamentales "( CSO2009‐09169) research project, financed by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness. Part of the article also refers to the“ Ciudadanía digital y e‐inclusión en el desarrollo de la gobernanza electrónica” research financed by the University of the Basque Country( Universidad del País Vasco / EHU)( EHU11 / 45).
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