E-Governance Divide

This paper attempts to provide deeper insight into the e-government landscape in Asian region. First, the paper highlights the state of e-governance in Asia. Second, it determines the structure of the existing e-governance divide in the region from two different perspectives. Third, the paper investigates the possible impact of e-governance on the quality of governance in terms of: (i) voice and accountability and (ii) government effectiveness in the region. Our results show significant divide between sub-regions, particularly in the area of e-participation.

The World e-Parliament Report 2012 documents the efforts of legislatures to use information and communication technologies (ICT) to support their constitutional functions. The Report is based on the Global Survey of ICT in Parliaments 2012 conducted by the Global Centre for ICT in Parliament between February and May 2012, which is the third in a series of surveys that began in 2007. The number of parliaments responding to the surveys has increased over time, from 105 in 2007 to 134 in 2009 and 156 in 2012. These 156 parliaments represent a membership of 28,613 legislators.