Seychelles third in Africa in e-government development   |21 October 2022

Seychelles is among the top four countries in Africa with the highest E-Government Development Index (EGDI), according to the United Nations (UN) E-Government Survey 2022.

The survey, entitled ‘The future of digital government’ is published biennially by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, and comes only eight years from the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the shared global blueprint for countries to jointly build a better and sustainable future for all of the world’s citizens.

Consistent with the previous two surveys, only four African countries are among the top 100 in terms of overall EGDI ranking, with values above 0.6102.

South Africa is the regional front-runner (0.7377), followed by Mauritius (0.7201). Seychelles (0.6793) is behind Mauritius, and has shown signs of improvement with the 2020 EGDI score at 0.6920, while Tunisia secured a 2022 EGDI of 0.6530.

“In Africa, 95 per cent of the population lags behind; only 4 of the region’s 54 countries (South Africa, Mauritius, Seychelles and Tunisia) have EGDI values above the world average, and the very high EGDI group includes none of the countries in Africa,” the report states.

South Africa, Mauritius and Seychelles have in common rapid progress in e-government development, deriving from long-term digital government strategies, aligned with national policies and the SDGs.

As per the findings, significant digital transformation has taken place in Seychelles since the beginning of the pandemic, and although digital transformation in the country is yet to reach full potential, government has been engaging with telecommunications services to extend internet accessibility to more segments of the population. The major challenges in Seychelles include slow speed and high cost of internet services.

“The country has used the digitalisation momentum created by the pandemic to introduce innovative changes in the education and public administration systems, taking the country one step closer to realising the goals set out in the 2030 Agenda,” the report states.

Seychelles also ranks among the top in terms of small island developing states (Sids), among 12 of the 38 to have EGDI values above the global average. The 12 top performing Sids include Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Bahrain, Barbados, Dominican Republic, Fiji, Grenada, Mauritius, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Seychelles, Singapore, and Trinidad and Tobago.

In South Africa, who tops the list on the African continent, around 150 government services have been consolidated under the national e-government portal to simplify and streamline the flow of information and ensure easy access for users, as per the National Development Plan: Vision for 2030, which includes the National E-Government Strategy and Roadmap.

Second-runner on the continent, Mauritius has a Digital Government Transformation Strategy containing specific recommendations for government agencies on how to activate the SDGs. Additionally,  the Ministry of Information Technology, Communication and Innovation has worked together with the business community to align the e-government strategy with the Public Sector Business Transformation Strategy.

Although digitalisation trends in Africa are “positive overall” with a significant proportion of countries having invested in improving telecommunications infrastructure, towards building a solid foundation for accelerating the transition to digital government, development efforts are challenged.

Africa faces persistent challenges on account of the fact that efforts are undermined by the cost of mobile broadband subscriptions as a percentage of per capita gross national income, which remains significantly higher on the continent than anywhere else in the world. This is but one of the challenges that make it difficult for countries to narrow gaps in e-government development and bridge digital divides.

As per the findings, the overall global EGDI value has risen slightly from previous years, due to the progress made in strengthening telecommunications infrastructure. Europe has maintained its leading position with an average EGDI value of 0.8305, followed by Asia (0.6493), the Americas (0.6438), Oceania (0.5081), and Africa with an average EGDI value of 0.4054.

Measuring e-government effectiveness in the delivery of public services, the survey tracks progress of e-government development, and demonstrates how digital technologies, among other things, have allowed governments to play a key role in addressing the challenges surrounding the global health crisis, and “in ensuring effective delivery of essential public services during a period of growing isolation, uncertainty and vulnerability” .

Over the past two Covid-stricken years, 90 percent of member states have established dedicated, essential portals, and made space in their national portals to address issues and public services related to the pandemic. The progresses made over the last couple of years are indicative of how digital government can help the world to tackle other global crises, such as climate change, and future shocks and risks.

Laura Pillay