Factors affecting successful implementation of E-government projects in Sri Lanka

Abstract

E-government concept which enables governments to provide an enhanced service has become one of a most widely discussed topics today. Sri Lanka is lagging behind in this respect when compared with developed countries and many developing countries. In 2002 the government of Sri Lanka launched the e-Sri Lanka programme to spread the dividends of ICT across the country. There is considerable evidence to point out that most of the Sri Lankan government institutes are only in the initial phase of implementing e-government services, and some experienced failures due to number of problems such as poor infrastructure, ineffective leadership, ineffective requirement identification etc. Very few researches have been conducted to identify factors that contribute towards successful completion of e-government projects, especially in Sri Lanka. The objective of this research is to identify enablers of successful e-government projects and to develop a framework which may help organizations to initiate, execute and implement e-government efforts successfully. A survey was carried out among selected public sector organizations to collect data. Based on the research, it was found that clear vision for e-government, well established objectives and strategies, effective leadership, attitudes of management and staff, availability of funds, size of IT staff, requirement identification, overall Information technology infrastructure, and business process reengineering are the most important factors an organization should address when implementing e-government projects. Moreover, it is quite evident that some factors are specific to individual organization. The framework developed highlights the common e-government enablers that should receive more attention in each stage of the life cycle of e-government project.