00 amsebastian egovernance final paper 2011 12 12 v3

8/3/2019 00 AMSebastian eGovernance Final Paper 2011 12 12 v3

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Implementationofe-LGUinthePhilippinesandtheCaseofAngono,Rizal

ByAsuncionM.Sebastian12

thofDecember2011

UnderDr.FranciscoA.MagnoForDVS599Pe-Governance


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Abstract

This paper aims to look at the applicability of the propositions made in four

articlesfactorsthatcontributetothesuccessofe-governmentimplementation

tothePhilippinecontextbyusingthecaseofAngono,Rizal.Themunicipalitywasthe recipient of the Technology Leadership Award for excellence in concept and

projectmanagementinrelationtotechnologydeploymentin2010,thusitsstoryis

worthexamining. Inaddition, the paper also looked into the overall issues intheimplementationofthee-LGUtoprovideabroaderperspectiveofthetopicthese

issuesincludedleadership,organizationalbehavior,andinfrastructure.

In the end, the paper proposes that eight factors contribute to the success of e-

government implementation: 1) leadership; 2) change management strategies; 3)high level of skills of personnel; 4) infrastructure; 5) citizen involvement and

education; 6) institutionalization of ICT initiatives to make it politics-proof; 7)

employment of high- and immediate-impact systems first; and 8) professionalmiddlemanagement.Thesefactorsarethenclassifiedintotheirtype(externaland

internaltotheLGUs)andtheirrolesinthevariousstagesofICTimplementation.


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TableofContents

Introduction........................................... ............................................ ............................................. ............. 1

ResearchQuestions.............................................. ............................................ .................................... 3RationaleandContributionoftheStudy.... ............................................ .................................... 4

Methodology ............................................ ............................................. ............................................ ...... 4

Limitations.................................. ............................................ ............................................ ..................... 5

ReviewofLiterature........................................................ ............................................. ............................ 5

E-LGUinthePhilippines.......................................................................................................................10PolicyEnvironment ...................................... ............................................ .........................................10

ProgramOverview........................................ ............................................ .........................................11

ImplementationIssues:WhyManyLGUsFailed...................................................................12Leadership ........................................... ............................................. ............................................ ....12

OrganizationalCultureandBehavior....................................................................................13

Infrastructure..................................................................................................................................14OtherSuccessFactorsine-LGUImplementation ....................................... ..........................15

TheCaseofAngono,Rizal....................................................................................................................16

ProfileofAngono ........................................... ............................................ .........................................16

E-GovernmentFeatures...................................................................................................................16

Applications/RevenueGenerationSystems .......................................... ..........................16

WebDevelopment ........................................... ............................................ ..................................17

EffectiveICTPracticesofAngono:WhyItSucceeded ............................................. ...........18

Conclusion ....................................... ............................................ ............................................ ...................19

DirectionforFurtherResearch .......................................... ............................................ ...................23

WorksCited

Annex1Annex2


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Implementationofe-LGUinthePhilippines

andtheCaseofAngono,Rizal

Introduction

InanarchipelagiccountrysuchasthePhilippines,thenewdigitaltechnology,and

theinformationandcommunicationtechnology(ICT)ingeneral,playasignificant

role in bridging the physically disconnected islands and overcoming the

longstandingchallengesofinfrastructure.ICThaschangednotonlythewaypeopleinteractanddobusinessbutalsothewaythegovernmentdealswithitscitizens.

The Philippine government recognizes its primary role in ICT development by

providing an enabling policy, legal, and regulatory environments that level theplaying field and allow the private sector to lead. Specifically, the governmentintends to use ICT to promote efficiency, responsiveness of service delivery, and

transparency in government via e-Governancethis includes the processing ofbusiness permits, effective revenue generation, ensuring better law enforcement,

andprovidingsocialsecuritybenefitstopeople,amongothers.(Montecastro,2008)

ThegoalofusingICTingovernmentisconsistentwiththatoftheLocalGovernment

Code in 1991 that was meant to empower local government units (LGUs) and

promote social development through the decentralization of power. According to

Lim (2003, in Alampay), e-government implies an appropriate balance between

technologyasatooltoimprovegoodgovernancebyincreasingtheopportunitiesfor

interactions and dialogue between the government and those it serves, and analternativechannelforcitizenstoaccessgovernmentservices,andparticipateinthe

decision-making process which strengthens the fundamental existence of

governments to govern in a transparent, open, and accountable manner. ICT istherefore integral inhelping the LGUs become more self-reliant, empowered, and

participatorythroughe-government.(Alampay)

The e-government in LGUs started with the three-year e-LGU project that was

launchedin2002.AmongitscomponentswastheestablishmentofwebpresencebytheLGUs.Bythe end oftheproject in2005,almostall LGUshadwebpresence

(seeFigure1).However,74percentoftheLGUswereinStage1,21percentinStage

2,andtherestinStage3;noonehadreachedthemoreadvancedstagesattheend

ofthreeyears.


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Figure1:LGUWebPresencein2005

ThedescriptionofthevariousstagesispresentedinAnnex1.

Figure2showsthestateofthewebpresenceby2007whileFigure3,combiningthe

datainFigures1and2,indicatesthepercentagechangesineachstageandineach

LGUtype.

Figure2:LGUWebPresencein2007

Figure3:MovementinStagesofLGUWebPresence,2005-2007

Atthistime,thenumberofcitieswithwebpresenceincreasedby13percentwhilethenumberofprovincesandmunicipalitiesslightlydecreased.Asforthestagesof

their web presence, the LGUs tended to concentrate in Stage 2, indicating bothupward anddownward movements tothisstage. Thus,the proportion ofLGUsin

various stages had also changed slightly after two years: 70 percent remained in

Stage1,26percentwereinStage2,andtherestwereinStage3.

In 2009, however, the NCC decided to fully stop the hosting services it provides

LGUsacrossthecountry,inamoveaimedatenablingtheLGUstobeself-sufficientespecially in sustaining their online presence. By 2010, only 390 LGUs had web

presence;ofthisnumber,155wereonstage1,131onStage2,and104onStage3.

(InterAksyon,2011) The totalnumberofLGUswith web presencedropped by77

percentfrom2005figure,albeitmoreLGUswereinStage2(34percent)andStage3

(27percent).(Figure4)


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84

64

104

Figure4:NumberofLGUsinVariousStages,2005,2007,and2010

ResearchQuestions

The LGUsoverallwebpresence seemed tohavedeteriorated inthe lastsix yearsdespitethePhilippinesranking66thoutof 192countries intheUnitedNationse-

GovernmentReadiness Survey and 45th inthe Web Measure Index, both in 2008.

(Montecastro,2008)Onthecitizensorusersside,thecountryhasbeenrecognized

asthetop17intheworldbothintermsofnumberofInternetusers(29.7million)

and of penetration rate (29.2 percent of the population). (Miniwatts MarketingGroup,2011)AsforthegrowthofInternetusersfrom2000to2011,thePhilippines

ranked10thofthetop20countriescited.(Annex2)

While77percentoftheLGUslosttheirwebpresenceby2010,onthecontrary,the

mayor of the municipality of Angono, Hon. Gerardo V. Calderon, received the

Technology Leadership Award that year, which recognized the eGov4MDs1

excellence in concept and project management in relation to technology

1 The e-Governance for Municipal Development (eGov4MD) Project, started in April 2007, was a

collaborative initiative among the League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP), the Mayors

Development Center (MDC), Canadian Executive Service Organization (CESO), and the National

Computer Centerof the Commissionon Information and Communication Technology (CICT-NCC),

supportedbytheDepartmentofInteriorandLocalGovernmentandtheDepartmentofTradeand

Industry. Its goal is to improve local governance, including increasing efficiency of public service

deliveryandrevenuegeneration,bypromotinghumanresourcedevelopmentinthefieldofICTand

promotingtheuseofNationalComputerCenterse-LGUsoftwarepackage.(source:www.lmp.org.ph)

1,235

1,197

115

351 450

131


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deployment. The award was given by the Chief Information Officers Forum

Foundation (CIOFF), a foundation established by chief information officers and

information and communications technology executives and managers from the

government.(LeagueofMunicipalitiesofthePhilippines,2010)

Giventhisscenario,thispaperaimstoanswerthefollowingquestions: Whywere77percentoftheLGUsin2005notabletomaintaintheirwebsites

by2010?

Why has the Angono Municipal Government, considering the relatively

smallerrevenuestreamsofmunicipalitiescomparedtocitiesandprovinces,

beenabletosustainitswebpresenceandevenreceivedanawardforitse-

governmentinitiativesuptothistime?

Whatfactorscontributetothesuccessoforhindertheimplementationofe-

governmentinthePhilippinesatthemunicipalitylevel?

RationaleandContributionoftheStudy

Majorityof authors ofmaterials onthe success and/orfailure ofimplementing e-

governmentarefromtheWest,citingcasesinIndiaandLatinAmericaasexamplesand bases of their propositions. This paper shall use these authors analytical

framework to test whether or not their propositions are also applicable in thePhilippine context, thereby contributing to the body of local ICT materials,

specificallyone-government.

Further,thereisscarcityofstudiesontheimplementationofe-governmentinthe

country;thefewavailablematerialsmadegeneralizationsbasedone-LGUingeneral

without necessarily considering the differences in the resourcesand political and

cultural background, among other things, of the 1,709 LGUs. This paperscontribution is an analysis of what works or does not work given the particular

contextofAngono.

Finally, this paper aims to document the successful practices in e-government,

showcasingthelessonsthatmaybeapplicabletotheLGUswithcontextsimilarto

thatofthecasesubject.

Methodology

Thisstudyshallusethecasestudyapproach,whereintworesearchmethodswillbe

employed:1)interviewwithkeyinformantsthatincludetheformerChairpersonsof

the Commission on Information and Communication Technology and the

management and staff of the Municipality Government of Angono and itsneighboringmunicipality,Taytay;and2)secondarymaterialsearch.

AsintheworksofJones,Irani,Sharif,andThemistocieous(2006)whichalsousedthesamemethodology,casestudywasdeemedappropriatetousetodescribethe


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coreissuesassociatedwithe-government(intheirstudy,itwasaboutevaluationin

the public sector). Generalization is not sought, rather, undertanding the deeper

structureofthephenomenonunderstudy.

Limitations

Thisstudywouldhavebeenmorecomprehensiveifcasesofsimilarmunicipalities

wereincludedforcomparison;however,theneighboringmunicipalitiesofAngonosuch as Taytay, Cainta, and Antipolo (considered here to eliminate possible

discrepancies due to difference in topography, natural resource endowment, and

infrastructure,amongothers,ofthecasesubjects)startedwiththeirICTapplication

only in 20102 while Angono began its own in 2005. The six-year head start of

Angono would not allow objective and accurate comparison of these other

municipalities.

Further,ithasprovendifficulttoaskwhythenotso-successfulmunicipalitiessuch

asTaytayare not abletodo whatAngono has achievedpeoplewouldnot admittheirfailureortheywouldbedefensiveaboutwhytheyfailed,andeitherway,no

accurate data could be drawn from them. Perhaps even in future studies,documenting successes might prove more feasible than recording failures, thus

provingthevalidityoftheanti-thesis(i.e.provingthecasewouldindeedbeafailureintheabsenceofthesuccessfactors)maynotbeeasy,ifpossibleatall.

Another limitation of the study is the type of information sourceall of the keyinformants are either former or current government employees, thus the

perspective presented in this study did not include that of the citizens. Under a

different circumstancewhere there ismore luxury time,a survey onthe citizens

usage,attitude,andinterestine-governmentwouldhaveprovideddeeperinsightson e-government issues. After all, the citizens are the primary stakeholders in e-

government.

ReviewofLiterature

Fourmaterialsonissuesine-governmentimplementationarereviewed:

Dada,D.(2006).TheFailureofe-GovernmentinDevelopingCountries:ALiterarure

Review.TheElectronicJournalofInformationSystemsinDevelopingCountries.

Jen-HwaHu,P.,Chu,D.,&Sherwood,A.C.ExaminingCross-AgencyCollaborationsin

e-GovernmentInitiatives.Proceedingsofthe39thHawaiiInternationalConferenceon

SystemScience.

2AlthoughthatofAntipolostartedduringthefirstthree-yearsofthee-LGUprojectandhasbeenrevivedonly

recently.


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Jones,S.,Irani,Z.,Sharif,A.,&Themistocieous,M.(2006).e-GovernmentEvaluation:

ReflectionsonTwoOrganizationalStudies.Proceedingsofthe39thHawaii

InternationalConferenceonSystemScience.

Sagun,R.A.(n.d.).ACaseNoteonICTforDevelopmentProject.

Dada discussed the implementation issues in e-governmentfrom a big picture or

macro perspective while Jones et.al. did the same but from a micro/firm or

organizationpointofview.Jen-HwaHuet.al.,ontheotherhand,lookedattheissues

from the inter-agency context.Lastly, Sagun (n.d.) wroteonthe e-Governance for

MunicipalDevelopment(eGov4MD)inthePhilippinesandcameupwithspecifickey

success factors in e-governance (andnot juste-government) implementation.The

relationshipsofthesefourmaterialsaresummarizedinFigure5.

Figure5:LiteratureunderReview

Dada(2006)assertedthate-governmentisnotjustaboutcomputerizationbutthe

ability of technology to achieve levels of improvement in various areas of

government,transformingthenatureofpoliticsandtherelationsgovernmentsandcitizens(p.1).Inhisarticle,heconcentratedonthetotalfailures(i.e.e-government

wasnotimplementedorwasimplementedbutimmediatelyabandoned)andpartial

failures (i.e. major goals were not attained and/or there were undesirableoutcomes),supportingthestatementofAvgerouandWalsham(2000,inDada)that

successstoriescanbefoundbutfailuresaremorefrequent.Thus,hecameupwith

failurefactors.

AccordingtoDada(2006),failurefactorsmaybegroupedbasedonHeekss(2003,

inDada)archetypesofsituations:1)hard-softgaps;2)private-publicgaps;and3)


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country context gaps. The hard-soft gaps, referring to hard technology and soft

(people,culture,politics)technology,includeweaknessorinadequacyinresources,

skill levels and training, values, beliefs, and motivations of those involved in the

project. Cecchini and Raina (2004, in Dada) also proposed that the technologyshould be developed in collaboration with the local staff. Further, the use of ICT

requireschangingandreengineeringtheprocessestoadapttothenewtechnologyand culture of an e-government; however, this change is often perceived as a

reductionofonesauthority,thustheresistancefromtheorganization.Onalarger

scale, Jaeger and Thompson (2003, inDada) emphasized the need to educate the

citizensonthevalueofe-government,ase-governmentwouldfailiftheusersfailto

usethetechnology.

Asfortheprivate-publicgaps,oneelementisthehighturnoverrateofgovernment

ITemployeesdue to uncompetitive compensation,which leaves the public sector

with low-skillworkers.This situation then often leadstothe clash ofculture andvalues of the developer (private) and user (public) in the ICT projects. Also, the

public sector is frequently technology-centered rather than information-centered,thusresultingindesigngapsinsoftwaredevelopment.Thispublicsectorviewcanbeattributed to their general mindset: that citizens are recipients ofgovernment

service,asopposedtotheprivatesectorstreatmentofcustomers,whobringintheprofit for the company. In the private sector, the customers drive the business.

(Dada,2006)

Dadaalsohighlightedthedifferencesacrosscountrycontext,particularlybetween

developedanddevelopingcountries,in termsof workingcultures,skillsets,access

totechnology,andlevelofinfrastructure.In developingcountries,forexample,the

cost of telecommunications is still high, thus offsetting whatever benefits online

trasactionshavetooffer.Indevelopingcountries,too,thereisabiggernumberofuneducatedpoorpeoplewhowouldhaveproblemswiththeaffordability(andeven

theuse)oftechnology.(Dada,2006)

While Dada discussed the e-government issues at the national or country level,

Jones et. al. (2006) emphasized the organizational and managerial aspects in e-government. The authors enumerated various issues based on two case studies,

among them was decision making. They observed that decisions related to e-

governmentareoftenrelegatedtothemiddlemanagers,perceivedasobviousandcommonsenseeventhoughtheyinvolvefinancialinvestments;thus,suchdecisions

arenotalwaysbasedonaccountingandeconomics.Theyalsonotedthatmanagers

often make decisions to achieve their personal and professional goals, and notnecessarilyintheinterestoftheinstitution.Asfortherestoftheorganization,the

authors highlighted the resistance of (system) users to the decisions that bring

changetotheirworkingpractices.

Project evaluation and performance assessment are other areas of concern the

authorscited.Organizationsoftendonothavespecificpeopleorunittaskedtodo


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this function. Thus, the benefits or value of ICT is hardly analyzed vis--vis the

investment,if atall. Incaseswhereevaluationisdone,oftenitis usedtosupport

certain stakeholders, making the process subjective and political. Further, they

notedthatstakeholderopinionusersatisfaction,forexampleisnotsignificantlycanvassed.(Jones,Irani,Sharif,&Themistocieous,2006)

Finally, the authors pointed out that ownership or sponsorship from a senior

executiveiskeyinthee-governmentimplementationandthatthelackofitisoften

theconcernofthepractitioners.(Jones,Irani,Sharif,&Themistocieous,2006)

Sagun(n.d.),incontrasttoDadasfailurefactors,presentedhissuccessfactorsine-

governmentimplementationbasedontheexperienceoftheeGov4MDProject:

35percentwell-trainedmunicipalstaff

30percentchangingorganizationalbehavior,suchastheMayorssupportto

ICT-enabledservices,appreciationbymunicipalstafftomovefrommanual-basedoperationstocomputer-enabledoperations

20 percent re-engineering business processes, like streamlining the permitandlicensingprocesses

15percenttechnology,inthiscase,computers,internet,localareanetworks

andthesoftware

Theauthordidnotexplainhowthepercentageswerecomputedandonwhatbases;

however,thefiguresmaybeusedtosignifytheperceivedrelativecontributionof

eachfactortothesuccessofe-governmentimplementation.

Sagun (n.d.) cited that having well-trained municipal staff is the most important

success factor, followed by the sustained commitment and strong support of the

mayors of the participating municipalities. Political leadership, including therelevantdepartmentheads,shouldchampiontheprocess,fromadoptingmunicipal

resolutions,sendingstafftotrainingsandallocatingresourcestoprocureneededIT

equipmenttohavingaprojectmanagementplan.(p.3)

Inconclusion,hesaidthatventuringintoe-governancerequireslong-termpoliticalsupport, institutional maturity, capital investment both in hardware and human

resource,andawell-designed,visionaryroadmap.(Sagun)

Successorenablerfactors,butthistimeininter-organizationcontext,arepresented

byJen-Hwa Hu, Chu, andSherwood (2006). Amongthe most criticalones are the

following: leadership

management control, i.e. the process of testing, measuring, and providing

feedbackwithrespecttoadefinedgoal

trust,i.e.thewillingnessofapartytobevulnerabletotheactionoftheother

basedonthebeliefsintheotherpartysability,benevolence,andintegrity


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mutual adjustment (of agencies involved), which refers to considerable

reciprocalinterdependence

The authors added that infrastructural underpinning is needed to support theenabling factors. This comprised defined rules and procedures, formal

communication means, and informal communication channels and protocols.Withoutthesemechanisms,trustandmutualadjustmentscannotbeattained.(Jen-

HwaHu,Chu,&Sherwood)

The factors contributing to the success or failure of the e-government

implementationmentionedbythevariousauthorsaresummrizedinFigure6.

Figure6:SummaryofFactorsContributingtothe

Success/Failureofe-GovernmentImplementation


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E-LGUinthePhilippines

PolicyEnvironment

Thehistoryofe-governmentinthePhilippinesmaybetracedtotheestablishment

oftheNationalComputerCenter(NCC)in1971,whichwasintendedtospearheadthedevelopmentofinformationtechnologyinthecountryfornationbuilding.AsidefromJapan,onlythePhilippineshadanICTcenterinAsiaatthattime.(Uy,2011)No

literature however accounts for the ICT development thereafter, from the 1970s

untiltheearly1990s.

Executive Order 190 of 1994 (and amended by EO 469 in 1998) was issued foradopting the National Information Technology Plan 2000 (NITP2000) and

establishing the National Information Technology Council (NITC) as the central

policybodyonICTmattersinthecountry.Forthefirsttime,governmentdeveloped

a comprehensive plan andmapped out strategies for the development of the ICT

industry as well as the adoption of ICT in the public sector. (Commission on

InformationandCommunicationTechnology,2011)

Thenin1997,thegovernmentdefinedinIT21thebroadprinciplesandstrategies

mentioned in previous National Information Technology Plans into more specific

programsandactivities.IT21delineatedtherolesofthegovernmentandtheprivate

sector and was subsequently complimented by Administrative Order 232, whichinstructed all government agencies and instrumentalities including local

government units to undertake electronic interconnection through the Internet.(Alampay,2005inAlampay)

ThepassingofRepublicActNo.8792in2000,otherwiseknownasthee-CommerceAct,was amilestonethat markedthegovernmentsseriousintent tomakeICTan

integral part of national strategy for growth, promoting the universal use of

electronic transaction and mandating all government offices to transact business

online.AmongitsgoalsweretomakeICTsintegratedintoLGUoperations,inorder

todeliver more efficient andeffective servicestocitizens, whileat the same time

generating higher revenues for themselves. (Siar, 2005) This law was supported

further by the e-Government Information Systems Plan (Executive Order 265)

issued that same year, which detailed the policies, strategies, infrastructure,

technologysolutions,andfinancingoptionsthatshouldbeputinplacetorealizethe

countrysvisionofaPhilippineGovernmentOnline.Likewise,theMediumTermPhilippine DevelopmentPlan from 2004 to2010 highlightedthe full potentials of

ICT as a tool for knowledge creation and diffusion in the country. (Montecastro,

2008)

In2004,theCommissiononInformationandCommunicationTechnologies(CICT)

was created to take into account the convergence of telecommunications,broadcastingandcomputertechnologies(Alampay2005).Thiswastoaddresswhat


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Rye(2002)describedasafragmentedpolicyandprogramimplementationofICT

activities inthe country.Amongthe institutionsthat the CICT absorbed were the

NCC and the telecommunication planning office of the Department of

TransportationandCommunications(DOTC).Assuch,theCICTbecametheprimaryinstitution for developing IT policy, programs and projects for the government,

includingthee-LGUproject.(Alampay)

By2008,abillwaspendinginthe PhilippineCongress,whichaimed tocreatethe

Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT). The new

department would consist of all the existing offices of the DOTC dealing with

communications, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), the

PhilippinePostalCorporation(PPC),andtheNCC.TheDepartmentsmandatewould

be to ensure the provision of strategic, dependable, and cost-efficient ICT

infrastructures, systems, and resources as instruments for nation-building and

globalcompetitiveness.Itwouldbetaskedaswelltopromoteapolicyenvironmentof fairness, broad private sector participation in ICT development, and balanced

investment between high-growth and economically depressed districts.(Montecastro,2008)

However,thebillnevergotpassedintolawandin2011,theCICToffice,whichusedtooperatedirectlyundertheOfficeofthePresident,wasabolishedanditsfunctions

subsumed under the Department of Science and Technology (DOST). The new

structure left CICT devoid of administrative power. Former CICT Chairman Ray

Roxas-ChuasaidthatbynothavingadepartmentdedicatedtoICTitwoulddifficult

fortheprogramproponentstopushfortheICTstrategy,astheirimplementation

wouldlargely dependin the priorities ofthe DOST.Incidentally, DOST focuses on

ICTinnovationwhiletheCICTadvocatestechnologyapplications.Besides,because

of the Local Government Code of 1991 that devolved the power to the LGUs, thecentral and national government agencies could only do so much in the LGUs

adopting ICT. Former CICT Chairman Ivan Uy added that by putting CICT under

DOSTthecountrysICTsituationwouldhaveregressedby10years.

ProgramOverview

In line with R.A. 8792, the NCC undertook the e-LGU Project in 2002, to beimplementedforthreeyearsuntil2005.ItsobjectivewastoenableLGUstoadopt

computerizationbyempoweringthemtoembracethetechnologyandtoapplythe

benefitsofICTtolocalgovernancetowardsanimprovedqualityofpublicservice.

(Montecastro,2008)The e-LGU Project was composed of five elements: 1) establishment of web

presence; 2) applications systems development, which included Business Permit

and Licensing System (eBPLS), Real Property Tax System (eRTPS), Treasury

Operations Management System (eTOMS), and Geographical Information System


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(GIS);3)LGUcapabilitybuilding;4)establishmentofCommunitye-Centers(CeCs);

and5)advocacyandpromotions.(Montecastro,2008)

Recognizing the LGUs resource constraints as a key factor hindering theiracquisitionandapplicationofcomputerizedoperations,theprojectemployedopen

sourcetechnologytoeliminatethehighcostofthird-partygovernancesolutionssomething that only the highly-urbanized and comparatively more affluent LGUs

were able to avail of as early as the 1990s. (Commission on Information and

CommunicationTechnology)

Priortoprojectimplementation,theNCCdeterminedthereadinessofLGUsfore-

governance,beginningwiththeinventoryofcomputerfacilities.Atthetime,totalof

15,446 computer units were reported by 640 LGUs, distributed unevenly from a

highof435unitstoalowoneunitperLGU. Citiesaveraged75computerunitsper

LGU;provinces,60units;andmunicipalities,10units.TheincomeclassificationofLGUs was not a significant factor in the LGUs investment in computer units. In

termsof Internetande-commerce facilities, 30.7 percent of the LGU respondentsreportedhavingInternetcapabilities,andthemajority(87.6percent)ofthemwereconnectedvia dial-up access. The LGUs with noInternetconnection attributed its

absencetotheabsenceofInternetserviceprovider(57percent),lackofbudget(40percent),andlackofmanagementsupport(9percent)andtheremaystillbesome

grainoftruthinthesedataalmostadecadeafterthelaunchoftheproject.Some22

percentoftheLGUssurveyedreportedhostingtheirownwebsite.(Mariano,2006)

The state of LGUs then was an apparent indication of the digital divide in the

country.

Ofthe1,694LGUs,only630(37percent)expressedinterestinICT;ofthisnumber,

100 were selected for the pilot run. Some 16 provinces, 17 cities, and 67municipalitiesrepresentingallregionsinthecountryparticipated;74oftheseLGUs

werefromsecondtosixthincomeclasses.

ImplementationIssues:WhyManyLGUsFailed

Leadership

Thefirstandprobablythemostcriticalreasonisleadershipwhichsupportsthe

propositionsofJoneset.al.(2006),Jen-HwaHuet.al.(2006),andSagun(n.d.).Based

ontheinterviewwiththeformerchairpersonsofCICT,theCommissioncouldonly

doso muchininfluencingtheLGUstoadopt ICT intheir operation,because theirauthoritycoveredonlythenationalgovernmentagencies(NGAs)andbecauseofthe

provision in the Local Government Code devolving power to the LGUs. The CICTcouldonlymakeICTservicesandproductsavailabletotheLGUsbuttheycouldnot

forcetheLGUstousethem.AndwhywouldtheydosoiftheadoptionofICTwould

forcethemtobecometransparentthecommonreasonwhytheuseofICTisnotpopularamongtheexecutives.AsUy(2011)putitcandidly,ifonedoesnothavethe


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buy-inofthemayor(ortheheadoftheLGU),forgetaboutICT,lestforcingtheissue

wouldjustleadtogreaterproblems.

Still in some cases, the LGUs were unwilling to invest in ICT once theCICT/NCC/national government support was pulled out, thus the initial

achievementsundere-LGUwerenotsustained.Still,thisinvestmentdecisionisafunction of political leadership described by Sagun (n.d.). For some resource-

challenged yet entrepreneurial LGUs, for example, they charged fees for their

services, thusturning ICTinto revenue-generating activity for them. Although for

the lower income LGUs in the rural areas, it was more of an infrastructure than

leadershipissue.Connectioninthelessdevelopedareascouldsometimesbeboth

unaffordableandunreliable.

OrganizationalCultureandBehavior

Resistancemaycomenotonlyfromthetopexecutivebutalsofromtherestofthe

organization.Peopletendtoresistchange,aspointedoutbyJoneset.al.(2006),Jen-Hwa Huet.al.(2006),and Sagun(n.d.).Thisscenarioisalsotruein the Philippine

contextthesourcesnarratedhowinsomeLGUsthestaffliterallycutoffthecableofthesystemanddestroyedthemachinesbypouringliquidonthemintheirdesire

to delay, if not toterminatethe project. Some people are simply notcomfortablewithtechnologywhileothersaretoooldtoadjusttoit,thustheresistance.Some

refusethenewtechnologybecauseitwouldinevitablyridofillegaltransactions(e.g.

useoffixers)fromwhichtheyearn.

Uy (2011) dismissed the perception that people resist ICT because it could cost

them their jobs, with machines replacing them. He said that the new technology

would not require laying off staff, but only re-training them to acquire the skillsnecessarytorunandmanagethesystems.Besides,headded,astheyaretheLGUs

couldmakedowithout50percentofitsmanpowerandsomecleverleadersuseICT

asanexcusetodownscalethebureaucracysothatpeoplehavesomethingtoblame

theirfateon.

Basedonthe evaluation ofthe e-LGUin2005,the main issues inimplementation

alsoincludedtheLGUslackofeitherinterestorcreativityinkeepingtheirwebsites

relevanttothepublic,withsomewebsiteshavingbeenstaticsincetheirlaunchin

2002; lack of awareness of the citizens as well as the local executives of theexistenceoftheirLGUswebsites;theLGUsresortingtoprivateprovidersthereby

not maximizing the use of resources made available to them through e-LGU, andinfrastructure.

ThemaintenanceandupdatingoftheLGUswebsitescontentprovedtobeanissueespeciallythatthepublicwouldnotpayattentiontothemiftheinformationinthese

sites were dated and/or irrelevant to the users. A content analysis of 102 city

government websites conducted by Siar (2005) found minimal adoption of e-

governance bymajority of the city governments andthe underutilization of their


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websitesase-governancetools.Thecontentwasmainlygearedtowardsinforming

people about the communitys characteristics and promoting citizen awareness,

with the bulk dealing only with standard information (i.e. topography, history,

composition of the government, etc.). Few efficiency enhancing services, such asinteractivelytransactingwithgovernmentanddownloadingformswerefoundand

that the promotion of policy-making and participation in decision-making wasnegligible.Onlysevenpercentofcitiesputordinancesandresolutionsonline,with

onlyoneprovidingfulldocumentdownload.(Siar,2005)

Alampay (n.d.), however, reasoned that some of these sites were hosted or

establishedbytheNCCandnotbytheLGUs,hence,someLGUsdidnothavedirect

controloverthecontentintheirownwebsites.Perhaps,Dadas(2006)proposition

inthiscasewascorrect,inthatthevalues,beliefs,andmotivationsofthoseinvolved

intheprojectinfluencethesuccessorfailureofe-government.EveniftheLGUsdid

not own the web sites initially, the people behind the LGUs could have takenwherethe NCC leftoff, tobenefit boththe LGUs and theircitizens.However,they

couldnothavetakeninitiativetodevelopandmaintainstheirwebpresenceunlesstheyappreciateditsvalue.

Furthermore,despitetheremarkablewebpresenceoftheLGUs,theremayalsobelow-levelofawarenessamongresidents,andevenamongmunicipalemployeesof

thesitespresence.Morealarmingwasthatthelocalchiefexecutives(mayorsand

governors)maythemselvesbeunawareoftheirownwebsite.(Alampay)Alampays

(n.d.)evaluationprimarilycenteredonwebsites,whichisonlybutpartoftheentire

e-LGU Project. Besides, web presence does not assure web usage bythe citizens;

demanddoesnotnecessarilyfollowsupply.Eventhen,itiscriticaltoknowwhysix

yearsafterthefirstthreeyearsofthee-LGUProject,today,only390LGUsormerely

22.8percentofthetotalhavewebpresence.

Infrastructure

AsnotedbyDada(2006)andSagun(n.d.),infrastructureisacommonchallengein

ICTimplementation.AccordingtoDenisVillorente,currentofficer-in-chargeofthe

NCC,foremostamongthischallengeweretheabsenceofgoodtelecommunications

infrastructure in some areas, the skyrocketing cost of IT solutions packages

availableinthemarket,andthelackoffundstofinanceICTprojects".(InterAksyon,

2011) In the rollout of CeCs, for example, the LGUs depended on the existinginfrastructureof theTelecommunicationsOffice(TELOF)3andthus,theCeCswere

subjectalsotothelimitationsoftheTELOFnetwork.Aswell,limitedfacilitiesanddistanceand time totravel tothese facilitieswere amongthebarriersto peoplesuse.(Alampay)

3 A government agency mandated to provide telecommunications facilities, including telephone system for

government offices, to provide communications services for purposes of augmenting limited or inadequate

existing private communication services, and to assist the private sector engaged in telecommunications

services in providing and maintaining backbone communications network. (source: http://www.dotc-

telof.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=28&Itemid=38)


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TheformerCICTchairpersonbelievedotherwise.Uy(2011)saidthatinfrastructure

was the easiest part; what he found most difficult was managing the people and

changing their culture and mindset. This was because under the e-LGU Project,softwareandsystemsdevelopmentweremadeavailabletotheLGUsforfree.Since

thesewereopen-sourcesoftwarepackages,interconnectivityandcompatibilitywithother government systems were established. Training programs were also

standardized toensurequality of staffskills and toaddress the common issue of

personnel turnover. With this design, LGUs within the same area may share soft

technologywithoneanother.However,becauseLGUswerefreetosourcetheirown

providers,whichtheyoftendofromtheprivatesector,incompatibilityofsystems

often became a problem and the goal of efficiency through shared resources was

hardly met. Apparently, even the use of infrastructure becomes a function of

leadershipandpoliticalwill.

Onhindsight,Uy(2011)saidthatcitizenswerenotproperlyinformedofthee-LGU

Project and were not considered in the program design. The systems wereadministration-centered rather than citizen-centered, which could have beenachieved by looking at their needs (e.g. what one needs to start a business) and

designingthesystemsaccordingly.Roxas-Chua(2011)alsonotedthateventhewebsiteswerealmostalwaystourist-centered,notcitizen-centered.

OtherInfluencingFactorsinImplementinge-LGU

WiththelimitedinfluenceofCICTontheLGUsanditslackofbureaucraticpowerasamereunitunderDOST,theLGUsareprettymuchleftontheirowninadoptingand

advancing ICT intheir areasof governance.Thus,the mayors (or the head ofthe

LGU)supporttoICTinitiativesiscrucial,especiallythatitsimplementationrequiresaconsiderableamountofresourcesintermsofinvestmentinfacilities,streamlining

processes,andstafftraining.

UnderleadershipalsofallsdedicationorallocationofresourcestoICT.Thisincludes

trainingofstaffthatwilluseandmaintainthesystems.Inmanyunsuccessfulcases,

there was no ICT person dedicated to the project or functionICT was treated

simplyasadhocandnotinstitutionalizedwithintheLGU.

Finally, to sustain the ICT programs even if the initiating leader does not get re-

electedtothepost,itisimportanttoengagethelocalbusiness.TheCICTinitiated

theformationofanICTcouncilineachLGUcomposedofthelocalexecutivesand

members of the local chamber of commerceto help institutionalize the ICT

program. The business sector, being a major partner of the local government inturningthewheelofthelocaleconomyaswellasmainusersand/orbeneficiariesof

ICT-enabledsystems,playsamajorpartinsustainingICTintheLGU.Besides,the

businesssectorisamorestableproponentofICTbecausemembersofthechamberdonotgetelectedasoftenasthelocalexecutivesdo.


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TheCaseofAngono,Rizal

ProfileofAngono

AngonoisafirstclassmunicipalityintheprovinceofRizal,locatedat29.38km.east

ofManila.ItisboundedbythemunicipalityofTaytayonthenorthwest,Antipoloonthenorth,Teresaonthenortheast,Binangonanonthesoutheast,andLagunadeBay

onthesouthwest.Ithasapopulationof74,668(2000Census)growingatarateof5percentperannum.ThemaineconomicactivitiesintheLGUincludemanufacturing,

agriculture,fishery,andforestry.(AngonoMunicipalGovernment)

In 2010, its Honorable Mayor Gerardo Calderon was given the Technology

Leadership Award for EGov4MD. The selection of awardees was based on the

municipalitysleadershipinICTimplementation,abilitytoaccomplishthegoalsina

shortperiodoftimewithleastproblems,andwillingnesstotrainand/orshareICT

employees.

E-GovernmentFeatures

Applications/RevenueGenerationSystems

TheICTinitiativeinAngonostartedin2005whileMayorCalderonwasservinghis

thirdterm.TheLGUtookoutaloanworthPhp7milliontofinanceitsinvestmentin

GISandotherrelatedapplications.

TheGeographicInformationSystem(GIS)captures,stores,analyzes,managesand

presentsdatawithreferencetogeographiclocationdata(suchasmappingfor)tax

collection, land use, climate change issues. (Commission on Information andCommunication Technology, 2011) According to Ms. Nancy Unidad (2011), theMunicipalPlanningandDevelopmentCoordinator(MPDC)whohasbeenworkingin

the municipalofficesince 1990,theadoptionof GIS was something theirunithad

beendiscussingforquitesometimebeforetheymadeaformalrecommendationto

the Mayors office. Specifically, the MPDC needed the ICT system to ensure the

accuracyofplanningintrafficmanagement,disasterprevention,infrastructure,androadnetwork;solvetheincidenceofinaccurateinventoryoftaxableland,erroneous

taxdeclaration,andbusinesseswithoutpermitsandlicenses;andlessenedthecases

ofillegalsettlers.(LocalGovernmentUnitAngonoRizal)

IttooktheLGU11monthstosetupthewholesystem,includingstafftraining.Since

thepersonnelwereinvolvedasearlyastheplanningprocess,theywerewillingto

undergotraininginusingGISwhenitwasadopted.

Indeed,theimpactofGISwasfeltimmediately,theysaidwitheachresidentand

each business entitywas properlytracked andeach propertytagged, the MPDCs

workbecamemoremanageableandfaster,anditsoutputmoreaccurate.Inthepast,


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theunitgatheredinformationfromthebarangay(village)captainstodeterminethe

needoftheresidents.Oftentheywouldgetwaitingshedandotherconstruction-

relatedprojectsasresponses.Therewerenoharddataonwhichtobasedecisions.

Puro kwentong kutsero (all folklores) then you decide on that basis. (Unidad,2011)

With the GIS, they were able toconduct surveys amongthe residents themselves

andvalidatethesoundnessofgatheredinformationthroughthesystem.Itturned

outthatmanypeoplewantedlivelihoodprograms,improvementofwaterways,and

promotionofpeaceandorder.

AfterGIScametheRealPropertyTaxSystem(eRTPS)fortheAssessorsOfficeand

the TreasuryOperations ManagementSystem (eTOMS) for the Treasury. Because

theacquisitionofthesesystemswasnotcoordinatedwithotherunitsandtheGIS

provider was from the private sector, interconnection became a problem. It wasresolvedeventually,however.

Sources admittedthatthe LGU had nothadany formal impactmonitoringfor theICT. They could only attest, however, that their recording of information had

become accurate, and the work process faster and more convenient for them.Further,fortheMPDCalone,therevenuetheywereabletogeneratefromupdating

thezoningvaluesofpropertiesasaresultoftheGISuseincreasedby500percent

ontheirfirstyearofuse.

Theyalsoaddedthattherehad beenno citizeninvolvementyetin the process.In

thefuture,theyhopetocomeupwithprogramsthatwouldaddresstheneedsofthe

citizens.

WebDevelopment

WhenaskedabouttheICTinthemunicipalgovernment,thesourceswerequickto

refertotheabovementionedapplicationsandsystems.Ittookthemawhiletorecall

that web presence was part of their ICT. They recalled the CICT-initiated project

with some demeaning tone: web site langdalawang computers at internet

connection para sa web site (only a web sitetwo computers and internet

connectionforthewebsite).

Angono setup its web site (http://www.angono.gov.ph/) inthe early2000swith

thehelpofCICTthatprovidedthemwithtwounitsofdesktopcomputers,Internetconnection,andone-yearstafftraining.

Today, the site, powered and maintained by a formerly Angono-based privatecompany,hasbeenwellmaintainedandupdated(e.g.themessageoftheMayorfor

the2011FiestaheldinNovember23alreadypostedonthesite).Its2010and2011

financials could be downloaded from the website, with the recent documents


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uploaded regularly (e.g. three new documents have been uploaded between

November20andDecember9).

Basedonthefive-stageUN-ASPAclassification,AngonoswebsitewouldbeonStage2.

EffectiveICTPracticesofAngono:WhyItSucceeded

Oneofthekeysuccessfactorsidentifiedbythesourceswasleadership.Theyalso

acknowledgethatplansandprioritieschangeaccordingtothetermoftheelected

leaders,thusthenon-elected,permanent-postmiddlemanagersdrawplanforonly

three years(minimumterm for an elected office).They said that they could only

give recommendations and if ICT is not the incumbents priority, they could not

pushforit.Theyfurtheropinedthatmanyleaderspreferspendingonconstruction

ratherthanonIT.InAngonoscase,theMunicipalGovernmentwaswillingtospend

ontechnologyandinfrastructure.Infact,7percentofitsassetsin2010and2011

wereinvestedinICT.4

The Angono Municipal staff described Mayor Calderonre-elected for his fourthtermin2010afteranothermayorfromopposingpartywaselectedin2007whenhe

could not have run after serving the post for three consecutive termsas avisionaryleader,withglobalperspective,andprogressivethinkingalwaysopento

innovations even in terms of waste, environmental, and disaster management.

(Unidad,2011)

It also helped to involve the local staff in the planning process to manage, if not

minimizepossibleresistance.TheirtrainingwasalsocriticalinsustainingtheICT

initiatives.InthecaseofMPDC,everyonefromtheunitknewhowtousetheGISsotheyhadnotbecomedependentononlyoneorfewpersonstorunthesystem.Finally,theloyaltyoftheregularornon-electedmiddlemanagementandstafftothe

institution helps sustain the ICT initiatives of the top management even after

changing of guards. Angono had had non-ICT supporter in the past; however,because the use of technology had become part of their jobs, the non-elected

personnelcontinueddoingwhattheydidanddidnotallowthenewleadertoaffect

theirperformance.Wekeeppoliticsout,thesourcessaid.

4ComputedbasedonthefinancialspostedintheAngonoRizalwebsite

(http://www.angono.gov.ph/other_angono_schools_financial.php?p=ot).


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Citizens involvement and education is yet another factor. As Jaeger and

Thompson(2003,inDada)emphasizedtheneedtoeducatethecitizensonthe

value of e-government, as e-government would fail if the users fail to use the

technology.ThecountryboastsofitshighinternetusageandgrowthbutiftheLGUwebpresencehasdeterioratedovertheyears,thenonemayconcludethat

the magnitude of internetusers isnot enough topressure the LGUs tokeeppace with the growing market or Internet-using citizenry. That, or the huge

InternetusersinthePhilippinesdonotpayattentiontosocio-politicalissuesas

muchastheydotosocialnetworkingandentertainment/gamingsites.

Chua (2011) also emphasized the need tostrengthen the ICT educationofthe

youngpeople.Asof2009,only8percentoftheuniversityandcollegegraduates

in the country completed ICT-related courses. Worse, the country has been

losingitsexperiencedITprofessionalstoothernationswhocouldaffordtopay

themmuchhighercompensation.

If this study were to make any contribution to the local ICT or e-governmentliterature, it would be in these three success factors not mentioned in othermaterials:

InstitutionalizingICTwillensurethesustainabilityoftheprogram.Attherate

thingsaregoingatthenationallevel,itwouldbedifficultatthistimeforCICT,

beingsubsumedunderDOST,toenforceitsstrategiesandpolicies.Forthewell

thought out plans to be implemented, they would require administrative

competenceandprowessofaninstitutionwithteeth.

Thus,institutionalizationofICTmayhappenattheLGUlevelforthemeantime.

ThismeansmakingtheICTinitiativepolitics-proof.AsproposedbyDouglassNorth(1990),institutionscaneitherbeformalorinformal,formalconstraints

such as rules that human beings devise, and informal constraints such as

conventions andcodesof behavior. (North, 1990)In the case of Angono, ICTmay be considered institutionalized, albeit informally, in that peopleare used

alreadytoICT-enabledworkenvironment.

However,AngonosneighboringmunicipalityofTaytay,thoughithasrevivedits

ICTonlyrecently,usedaformalmeansofinstitutionalizingitsICTprograms.TheTaytay Municipal Government issued an ordinance in 2010 creating the

ManagementInformationServiceSection(MISS),whichistasked,amongother

things,todoresearch,evaluateandmonitore-governmentimplementation,andtraining personnel in the use of ICT. MISS has its own office and staffa

statementthatICTisnotjustadhoc.WiththisnewMISS,allocationofresources

willalsobeassuredinthefuture.InthecaseofAngono,resourceallocationtoe-

governmentprojectisnotaproblemundertheincumbentmayor,butwithout

anypolicyonICTinplace,itmaynotbesoshouldanewmayorgetelectedin

2013.


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Involving the business sector in the project, e.g. through its membership in a

multi-stakeholdercouncil,canalsobeaformofformalinstitutionalizationthat

enhancesthesustainabilityofthee-governmentinitiative.Thebusinesssector,beingarevenuecontributor,canwieldpowertoinfluencethedirectionofICTin

theLGUaswellasprovideamorestablesupporttothecouncilbecausetheydonot hold elections every so often. Thus, involving the business sector in ICT

throughaformalstructurealsohelpsininstitutionalizingICTintheLGU.

Success begets success, thus the LGUs can build its ICT efforts on systems or

programsthatcreateimmediateimpacttoreinforcetheuseofICT.Indoingso,

themanagementneednotrallytheentireorganizationtouseICTandconvince

themofitsbenefits.InAngonosGIS,forexample,theMPDCstaffwerereadily

convincedofitspurposeandbenefitsbecausethesystemhasmadetheirlives

easier for them. Another impact area is decision makingthe new systemenabledthemtodraftplansofactionsthataremoreeffectiveinaddressingthe

citizens needs. The folklore-based programswhich are similar to Jones et.al.s(2006)obviousandcommonsensedecisionsnotbasedonaccountingandeconomicswereputtostopbecauseoftheaccuratedatageneratedbytheGIS.

Ontheotherhand,themunicipalgovernmenthasnotmaximizedthepotential

usageof itswebsitesprobablybecausefromtheadministrativeperspective,its

benefits are not direct and immediate. For example, how many tourists came

over the Art Capital because they found it in the web? What benefits has the

municipality enjoyed by beingtransparentto thepubic abouttheir financials?

Good imageandgovernance would not count much afterelectionunless the

citizensproveotherwise.

Finally,whileittakesstrongleadershipandpoliticalwilltostartanICTproject

and skilled people to make it work, apolitical and professional middle

managementwillsustaintheusageofICTevenwiththechangingofguards.TheexperienceofAngonoshowsthecriticalroleofthemiddlemanagementthat

which remained loyal to the institution and not to the politicianin thecontinuityofICTintheLGU.

These factors may be categorized into externalsuch as citizen involvement andeducation,andinfrastructureandinternaltotheLGU.Whiletheinternalfactors

are well within the control of the LGUs, they, the LGUs, can only influence the

externalfactors.TheycanhaveeducationcampaignforitscitizensintheuseofthepublicICTfacilitiesoronlineservicesforexamplebutultimately,itisthecitizens

whodecidewhethertousethemornot.Similarly,theLGUscandecidetoinvestin

broadbandconnectionbutiftherearenoprovidersintheirareaorifpowersupply

inthelocalityrunsforonly12hoursaday,theirICT-basedserviceswillbelimited.


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Since the importance of these success factors also varies in different stages of

implementation, they may also be organized accordinglyinception (or

introductiontotheorganization),installation(orsystemstartup),andintegration

(institutionalizationofICTprojects).Leadership,forexample,iscrucialatinceptionand installation, as it directs the organization and allocates necessary resources.

However,onceICTgetsinstitutionalized,itcanworkregardlesswhotheleaderis.Change management, or changing organizational behavior, is likewise crucial at

inception,asitwillminimizeresistancefromthepeople.Inceptionstagecanalsobe

usedtotrain the staffso thatbyinstallation phasethe organization alreadyhas a

poolofskilledemployeeswhocansustaintheICTupuntilitisintegratedintotheir

work culture. However, having professional middle management may not be as

crucialattheinceptionandsysteminstallationasitisattheintegrationstage.

Figure 7 summarizes thesesuccess factors according totheir type and role inthe

implementationstage.Notethattheexternalfactorsareconsistentlyhighlightedinallstagesofimplementation.Thereasonisthatcitizens,becauseoftheirgrowthand

mobility, need to be constantly educated; besides, technology is so dynamic thatpeople need to be updated with its latest development regularly. Similarly,infrastructureisdrawnallthroughouttheimplementationprocessbecauseithasto

bemaintainedorattimes,itrequiresnewinvestmentshavetobemade.

Figure7:SummaryofKeySuccessFactorsAccordingtoTypeand

ImportanceinImplementationStages


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DirectionforFurtherResearch

Forfutureresearch,itwillbevaluabletodoastudyonthecitizensneedsthatwill

helptheLGUsmaketheirsystemsmoreresponsiveandmorerelevanttothem.Thestudymayaimtodeterminethereasonforthelowlevelofawarenessandusageof

theLGUwebsitesamongFilipinosdespitethehighnumberofInternetusersinthecountry.FindingoutwhythelowlevelofawarenessoftheLGUwebsitesamong

Filipinosthat despite the countrys ranking 17th in the world both in terms of

number of Internet users and penetration rate, and 10th in terms of growth ofinternetusersfrom2000to2011isalreadyamajorstepinmakinge-government

citizen-centric.

Another area of research interest is the impact of e-government, and e-LGU in

particular, in terms of efficiency, responsiveness of service delivery, and

transparencyingovernment.Asmentionedinthereviewofliterature,theeconomic

viabilityoftheICTmaybesupportedbyempiricalevidence(costofICTvis--visits

benefits to the LGU staff and the citizens). More importantly such study mayevaluate the e-government projects on the basis of development and citizen

participation.AsJen-HwaHuet.al.(2006)proposed,thee-governmentprojectmust

betestedandmeasured,andprovidefeedbackwithrespecttoadefinedgoal.

Finally,thepropositionspresentedinthispapermaybetestedempiricallytoshow

evidence and even to determine the extent by which each of the eight factors

presentedleadership, change management strategies, skilled personnel,

infrastructure,citizeninvolvementandeducation,institutionalization,employmentof high- and immediate-impact systems first, and professional middle

managementcontributetothesuccessofe-governmentimplementation.


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Annex1


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Annex2

00 amsebastian egovernance final paper 2011 12 12 v3

Documents