NHS Direct Win e-Government Award

Innovative health and symptom checkers recognised for improving service for patients

NHS Direct’s online health and symptom checkers were recognised for their innovative approach to improving services at this year’s e-Government awards.

NHS Direct was awarded the ‘Innovation in strategy on a national level’ accolade at the ceremony on Wednesday 26 January. The award demonstrates how NHS Direct’s health and symptom checkers have improved processes, effectiveness and services to patients within the transformational government agenda. NHS Direct was one of seven finalists shortlisted for the award.

NHS Direct has been developing its award-winning suite of health and symptom checkers over the last year. They are available at www.nhs.uk/nhsdirect and cover a wide range of topics including specific conditions such as diarrhoea and vomiting, colds and flu and sexual health matters, as well as more specialist advice on issues such as contraception and mental health.

The checkers were used over 700,000 times in December 2010 and, for the first time, overtook the telephone service during the busy two week Christmas period.

The tools work by asking the user a series of questions. Depending on the information provided, users may be offered self-care advice so that they can manage their symptoms at home, or it may suggest that further advice is sought from another health provider.
A call back from an NHS Direct nurse advisor is only a click away if a further assessment is recommended. For every 100 people who use the health and symptom checkers online, only four people need a callback.

Matthew Garrood, Associate Director of Multi Channel, NHS Direct, said:

“NHS Direct has historically been recognised as a telephone service; however our innovative approach to developing our suite of health and symptom checkers has firmly placed us as a leading provider of online health services too. This award is a great achievement and a testament to the hard work the team has put in to providing the clinical content and technical expertise to make these tools accessible and easy to use for our patients.”

(NHS)

The e-Government National Awards 2010 Winners Announced

Prime Minister David Cameron hails ‘fitting tribute’ to public sector ICT innovation

The winners have been announced in the e-Government National Awards 2010, the UK’s most closely watched public sector technology awards event. Congratulated via video link by the Prime Minister David Cameron, the country’s top public sector technology experts, leading civil servants and government ministers gathered in the London Guildhall on the evening of Wednesday 26 January as the winners in eleven Awards categories were announced.

These awards are totally independent, and recognise innovation and excellence among the UK’s most effective services to improve citizen and business transaction with councils, central government departments and other public sector organisations.

Addressing the guests, Prime Minister David Cameron said: “We want government to be more agile, more transparent, more open and accountable. That’s the kind of transformation this government is about. And we’re looking to you to help us achieve it.

“Tonight’s awards show clearly why you have put Britain at the forefront of e-government delivery in the world. We have the technology and skills, we have the innovation and crucially we have the people.”

Presenting the Awards personally on the night, Minister for the Cabinet Office, Francis Maude said:

“Tonight’s winners show why this country is at the very forefront of e-government delivery and as we push forward with our important modernising public services programme, digital technology will continue to play a crucial role in driving better services, while lowering costs.

“The work we have already started with our Digital Champion, Martha Lane-Fox, has shown, for instance, that shifting services to digital channels can transform the relationship between Government and individuals – improving service delivery and making them more convenient to use. It is that rare example of a win-win situation.

“I would like to congratulate everyone who has taken part for their hard work, skill and imagination. Tonight clearly demonstrates enormous progress and it’s this kind of progress we are committed to maintaining so we can continue to develop the services that this country needs and deserves.”

Awards judge and head of Government IT Advisory at KPMG Keith Bannister said:

“We are delighted to offer our continuing support to these Awards which have an important role to play in highlighting the innovative use of technology within the public sector, particularly at a time when it is under increased pressure to perform. From the development of a sustainable green IT project, as demonstrated by Queen Margaret University to the building of a fairer society at Ealing Mencap, there are many examples of how technology can support the UK’s progress in these important areas.”

e-Government National Awards 2010 results: Winners and Highly Commended

1. Building a fairer society with e-Government services

(Using ICT & e-government services to improve social inclusion or improve lives and communities)

• Winner: Ealing Help – Ealing Mencap & ESCAN

2. Central e-Government excellence: Take-up & usage growth

(Delivering high & growing take-up of an e-enabled service through effective service delivery & marketing)

• Winner: Response to Economic Downturn – Department for Work and Pensions

3. Central e-Government excellence: Team

(Proven team-working or partnership activity which has delivered more than the sum of the parts)

• Winner: N3 technology team – collaborative working, connecting healthcare – NHS Connecting for Health

• Highly Commended: Prison Health IT programme – Department of Health

4. e-Government excellence: Learning & Skills

(Public sector online or electronic services which transform education and/or learning & skills outcomes)

• Winner: e-Learning for Healthcare: e-SRH (Sexual and Reproductive Health) – Department of Health

5. e-Government excellence: Sustainable, ‘green IT’ or ‘carbon-efficient’ services

(ICT & e-government services which are helping the environment)

• Winner: Beyond thin-client: green IT at QMU – Queen Margaret University

• Highly Commended: Southend Borough Council’s ICT Strategy 2010-13 – Southend Borough Council

6. e-Government excellence: Innovation in strategy at a local level

(Delivering innovative strategies which have delivered above-average results in improved services, transformed processes & results, and increased effectiveness)

• Winner: Customer First Transformation Programme – Birmingham City Council

• Highly Commended: West Yorkshire Police iPortal – West Yorkshire Police

7. e-Government excellence: Innovation in strategy on a national level

(Delivering innovative strategies which have demonstrated above-average results in improved services, processes and effectiveness within the transformational government agenda)

• Winner: Online Health and Symptom Checkers – NHS Direct

8. e-Government excellence: Leadership & Professionalism

(Leading e-Government strategies and professional development which contribute to achieving positive transformation)

• Winner: Information Workplace Platform – Department for Education

9. e-Government excellence: Shared Services

(Proven shared services which have delivered effective services and efficiency gains)

• Winner: The PSBA Network: The UK’s First Public Multi-Sector Network – Welsh Assembly Government

10. Local e-Government excellence: Take-up & usage growth

(Ensuring high & growing take-up of an e-enabled service through effective service delivery & marketing)

• Winner: Looking Local – Kirklees Council

11. Local e-Government excellence: Team

(Proven team-working or partnership activity which has delivered more than the sum of the parts)

• Winner: Connect Digitally – Department for Education

Additional Informations:

The e-Government National Awards are run by Sift Media

Related web links:

e-Government National Awards: www.e-governmentawards.org.uk

Cabinet Office: www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk

SOCITM: www.socitm.gov.uk

SOLACE: www.solace.org.uk

KPMG: www.kpmg.co.uk

Vodafone: www.vodafone.co.uk

Sift Media: www.siftmedia.co.uk

PublicTechnology.net: www.publictechnology.net

For awards enquiries:

Rita Andrews, Head of Events, Sift Media

0117 915 8654

rita.andrews[at]siftmedia[dot]co.uk

E-government Software Site Locked in to Proprietary Software

The new Romanian e-government software campaign 'Biblioteca Nationala de Programe' (BNP) is being criticised by users for forcing them to use proprietary applications in order to access the BNP web site.

The BNP campaign website was unveiled a week ago by the Ministry of Communications and the National Institute for Research in Informatics (ICI). The site is meant to promote applications built in Romania and that are considered useful for public administrations and businesses.

www.i-stiri.ro

Users quickly began criticising the site, for access is only possible after installation of two proprietary applications, that only run on one proprietary operating system. The site also recommends a single proprietary web browser to access the site.

The requirements were called "absurd technological solutions" by the Madame Bovary Blog, a collective of political bloggers. Users left negative comments on the blog and on the website of Hotnews, a Romanian news site. "I wonder if it works for me", a user of the open source Linux system comments at the Bovary Blog.

Responding to the criticism, Doina Banciu, the general manager of ICI, told Hotnews that the fault was not ICI's. The repository is hosted on a proprietary Java application server, and depends on its proprietary modules that are not included in all operating systems. "Other problems may occur due to browsers not being compatible with these applications."

The National Library Program now contains about fifty software applications. Access will be free until the end of March. After that ICI will charge users to register new products, technical support and certification.

(OSOR)

Thousands Rally Against Government in Yemen

Tens of thousands of people called for the Yemeni president’s ouster in protests across the country on Thursday inspired by the popular revolt in Tunisia.

The demonstrations led by opposition members and youth activists are a significant expansion of the unrest sparked by the Tunisian uprising, which also inspired Egypt’s largest protests in years.

They pose a new threat to the stability of the Arab world’s most impoverished nation, which has become the focus of increased Western concern about a resurgent Al Qaeda branch, a northern rebellion and a secessionist movement in the south.

The largest demonstrations took place in the capital of Sanaa, where crowds in four parts of the city shut down streets and chanted slogans calling for an end to the government of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who has been in power for nearly 32 years.

“We will not accept anything less than the president leaving,” said independent parliamentarian Ahmed Hashid.

Yemenis attend a protest in Sanaa on Thursday calling for
President Ali Abdullah Saleh to quit
(AFP photo by Mohammad Huwais)

Similar anti-government protests took place in the southern provinces of Dali and Shabwa where riot police used batons to disperse the demonstrators.

In Hudaydah province, an Al Qaeda stronghold along the Red Sea coast, thousands took to the streets demanding the end of Saleh’s rule.

Opposition leaders called for more demonstrations on Friday.

“We’ll only be happy when we hear the words ‘I understand you’ from the president,” Hashid said, invoking a statement issued by Tunisian President Zine Al Abidine Ben Ali before he fled the country.

Saleh has tried to defuse simmering tensions by raising salaries for the army and by denying opponents’ claims he plans to install his son as his successor.

After the Tunisian turmoil, he ordered income taxes slashed in half and instructed his government to control prices. He deployed anti-riot police and soldiers to several key areas in Sanaa and its surroundings to prevent riots.

That hasn’t stopped critics of his rule from taking to the streets in days of protests calling for him to step down, a red line that few dissenters had previously dared to cross.

Nearly half of Yemen’s population lives below the poverty line of $2 a day and doesn’t have access to proper sanitation. Less than a tenth of the roads are paved. Tens of thousands have been displaced from their homes by conflict, flooding the cities.

The government is riddled with corruption, has little control outside the capital, and its main source of income - oil - could run dry in a decade.

Saleh’s current term in office expires in 2013 but proposed amendments to the constitution could let him remain in power for two additional terms of ten years.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged Yemen to step up security cooperation with the United States during an unannounced visit this month to shore up ties.

Following the Obama administration’s pattern in Afghanistan and Pakistan, Clinton also emphasised that the United States wanted a broader relationship with Yemen beyond the fight against violent extremists. Clinton was the first US secretary of state to visit Yemen in two decades.

Radicals have used the country as a base for launching attacks on the US. The radical cleric Anwar Al Awlaki, thought to be hiding in Yemen, is suspected of having inspired some of those attacks.

Clinton said the US supports efforts to address the underlying causes of extremism: Poverty, corruption, social inequality and political divisions that have boiled into an insurgency. She said Yemen must stop the practice of child marriage and enact reforms.

In the past five years, US military assistance to Yemen has totalled about $250 million. In 2010, military and civilian aid was almost evenly split and combined for about $300 million.

Military aid to Yemen would reach $250 million in 2011 alone, US officials said, and Clinton said there will be additional development aid.

Yemen has been the site of numerous anti-US attacks dating back to the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole in Aden harbour, which killed 17 American sailors

Just last month, several CIA operatives were the targets of a failed bombing at a restaurant in a Sanaa suburb, and Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula was thought to be behind the attempted bombing of an American airliner landing in Detroit on Christmas Day 2009.

Al Awlaki is thought also to have inspired the deadly 2009 shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas. Al Qaeda group’s fighters attacked the US Embassy in Sanaa twice in 2008.

With the help of US money and training by elite US commandos, Yemen is setting up provincial anti-terrorism units to confront Al Qaeda in its heartland.

(www.jordantimes.com)

Mubarak Sacks Government

Army believed to be on Egyptian president's side.

A protester holds rocks in the air, ready to throw at riot police, as he urges other protesters on during clashes in Cairo, Egypt, in the early hours of Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2011. Egyptian police fired tear gas and rubber bullets and beat protesters to clear thousands of people from a central Cairo square Wednesday after the biggest demonstrations in years against President Hosni Mubarak's authoritarian rule(Ben Curtis www.kansascity.com)

Hosni Mubarak, Egypt's president, announced late tonight (28 January) that he has sacked his government. In a tough and self-assured speech, the 82-year-old, who is reported to be in bad health, appeared to be in full control of the situation in the country.

Al Jazeera picture: Protesters warmly welcome armed military vehicles in downtown Cairo

(Photos: www.newswatchcanada.ca)

http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/01/27/egypts_new_suez_crisis

Friday saw the biggest demonstrations against Mubarak's 30-year rule yet, with several casualties reported in the capital, Cairo, and in the provincial city of Suez. Riot police were reinforced by army units. There were reports of live fire in Cairo, Suez and Alexandria.

http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/01/27/egypts_new_suez_crisis

Mubarak, a career officer who once commanded Egypt's air force, said that he was speaking to his people as an Egyptian, not the president. He said that he was on the side of the poor and that he had heard the demand for greater freedom. But, he warned that there was a thin line separating democracy from chaos and that he would not allow chaos to take hold in Egypt.

Explosions, gunfire heard in Cairo as protesters defy curfew

Mubarak offered no concessions to the protesters other than sacking the government and talking about the importance of economic development.

Protesters have set the headquarters of Mubarak's National Democratic Party on fire and attacked several ministries.

Earlier in the day, a White House spokesman gave evasive answers about the US administrations hopes for Egypt, while the EU called for restraint from both sides.

(www.europeanvoice.com)

UK a World Leader in e-Government

Prime Minister David Cameron is looking to technology and information officers to help him make government more agile and transparent.

Addressing guests at an e-government awards ceremony Cameron said the public sector had the skills and technology to transform government.

"We want government to be more agile, more transparent, more open and accountable. That's the kind of transformation this government is about. And we're looking to you to help us achieve it," he said.

The Prime Minister added: "You have put Britain at the forefront of e-government delivery in the world. We have the technology and skills, we have the innovation and crucially we have the people."

Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude reiterated the Prime Minister's sentiments. He said: "This country is at the very forefront of e-government delivery and as we push forward with our important modernising public services programme, digital technology will continue to play a crucial role in driving better services, while lowering costs.

"The work we have already started with our digital champion, Martha Lane-Fox, has shown, for instance, that shifting services to digital channels can transform the relationship between government and individuals – improving service delivery and making them more convenient to use. It is that rare example of a win-win situation."

But such sentiments come in contrast to views expressed by Public Accounts Committee chair Margaret Hodge, who recently said the public sector lacked effective people.

Hodge, a former Labour minister told a conference at the Institute of Government: "The civil service still fails to recruit sufficient people with the appropriate skills to manage public services in the modern world – like effective project managers and qualified IT specialists."

(www.publicservice.co.uk)

Thousands in Egypt protest Hosni Mubarak's rule, emboldened by Tunisian revolt

AP :A demonstrator defaces a poster of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Alexandria, Egypt, Tuesday Jan. 25, 2011. Thousands of protesters marched in Alexandria Tuesday in what was dubbed a "Day of Rage" against Mubarak and lack of political freedoms under his rule.

Thousands of Egyptians took to the streets of Cairo and at least four other major cities Tuesday, demanding an end to the 30-year rule by President Hosni Mubarak less than two weeks after a popular uprising toppled Tunisia’s dictator and sent shockwaves through the Arab world.

Egyptian state media reported that a police officer died, and there were unconfirmed reports in other news media that two demonstrators were killed during the biggest anti-government protests in decades.

“We want our rights,” demonstrators chanted. They also demanded an end to corruption, rampant unemployment and political repression. The government deployed throngs of black-clad police in anti-riot gear across Egypt, and used teargas and water cannons to disperse demonstrators in Cairo.

It also interrupted Web access to independent news sites and Twitter and jammed cell phone signals in downtown Cairo. It was a surprising move by Mubarak — who generally has allowed free speech and occasional protests — and may reflect fear that the unrest could mushroom. Demonstrations also took place in Alexandria on the northern coast, Mahalla in the Nile Delta, Aswan in the south and Suez in the east.

Dozens were injured or arrested, but official figures weren’t immediately available.

“This is only the beginning. It’s the first step towards change,” said Ahmed Salah, 45, an activist who helped organize the protests.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told reporters the United States is “very closely” monitoring the demonstrations around Egypt and supports “the fundamental right of expression and assembly for all people.” But she added the Egyptian government is “stable” and looking for ways to respond to “the legitimate needs and interests of the Egyptian people.”

What organizers dubbed a “day of revolt” was inspired in part by a Facebook page, “We Are All Khaled Said,” named for a 28-year-old Egyptian who police beat to death in the streets of the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria last summer. His story paralleled that of Mohamed Bouazizi, the young Tunisian fruit seller whose self-immolation after a confrontation with police catalyzed the Tunisian revolution.

Observers said the protests were the biggest in Egypt since the “bread riots” of the 1970s, when hundreds of thousands rioted to protest rising food prices.

(www.cleveland.com| AP)

China Leader Encourages Criticism of Government

Wen Jiabao (Nelson Ching/Bloomberg News)

Prime Minister Wen Jiabao is known for his populist approach and near constant presence in Chinese headlines. He often races to the scene of natural disasters to comfort survivors. On state-run television, he can be seen eating with the poor in rural villages. Though often stage-managed by Chinese news media, his common touch has earned him the nickname “Grandpa Wen.”

But this week, the 68-year-old prime minister made what many analysts consider a bolder statement: he appeared at the nation’s top petition bureau in Beijing, where people go to file grievances, and encouraged citizens to criticize the government and press their cases for justice.

“We are the people’s government, and our power is vested upon us by the people,” the prime minister said during the visit, according to state-run news media. “We should use the power in our hands to serve the interest of the people, helping them to tackle difficulties in a responsible way.”

The crucial factor was the setting. The national petition bureau is known as a lightning rod for anger about official corruption, illegal land seizures, labor disputes and complaints of all sort, the kind of problems that reveal China’s continuing weakness on the rule of law. In a nation that fiercely snuffs out any sign of dissent or challenges to the ruling Communist Party, the government sometimes deems it appropriate to detain petitioners here or to forcibly send them back home.

But on Wednesday, the state-run news media showed images of the prime minister meeting two days earlier with a small group of petitioners at the bureau, officially known as the State Bureau for Letters and Calls. The state-controlled media reports said he encouraged government workers to handle the petitioner cases properly.

Mr. Wen also instructed officials to make it easier for citizens to criticize and monitor the government. The reports said it was the first time a prime minister had appeared at the bureau to meet petitioners since the founding of the Communist state in 1949.

In recent months, Mr. Wen has appeared to press for political reform, though analysts are uncertain about whether he is pushing on his own or with the support of a broader segment of the nation’s leadership.

The media gave prominent display to articles about the visit on Wednesday, and blogs and Internet forums in China were buzzing with chatter about the visit.

More than 6,000 postings about the visit appeared on the popular Web site Netease.com, many of them praising the prime minister.

But there was also some criticism. On Sina.com’s popular Chinese microblog, someone named Langzi wrote, “Shouldn’t Wen be more concerned about how laws and rules are enforced?” Another blogger added, “Chinese people are still dreaming that a lord will come and implement justice.”

Lu Yuegang, a journalist who writes about the plight of petitioners, called Mr. Wen’s visit a positive move but said the petition system was flawed and that the government should abolish it and work on implementing the rule of law with judicial independence.

“The petition system has almost zero effect,” he said in an interview. “Most petitions received by the state bureau are sent back to the local governments, the place where the cases originate. The system is not a problem-solving system but a receiving-and-forwarding system. And it just recycles the cases. This is the core problem.”

And Phelim Kine, Asia researcher for  Human Rights Watch, said that Mr. Wen had become adept at showing his concern for the poor but that the nation’s legal system was still ineffective, the very reason so many petitioners travel to Beijing.

“Premier Wen consistently talks the talk on the crucial issues facing China,” Mr. Kine said in a telephone interview. “But can the government really make the changes necessary to fix a broken system?

“The court system doesn’t work, and these people can’t get legal redress.”

(THE NEW YORK TIMES)

Should the Government Reform How It Measures Inflation?

Netfegas.com

As the Federal Reserve's Open Market Committee meets today, we'll likely get an update on how its recent campaign to increase inflation is going. In November, it began another round of asset purchases because it was worried that inflation had become too low, and wanted to ensure that the U.S. wouldn't slip into deflation. Of course, this worry is only valid if inflation actually had been low, which some people deny. Although the official numbers clearly suggest low inflation, can we trust them?

For some reason, arguments that the government's methodology is flawed have become prevalent this week. Today, the Wall Street Journal has a column by Brett Arends that points out several flaws in the government's calculations. Yesterday, Zero Hedge featured a post by Chris Martenson making some of the same claims and others.

A big chunk of the crowd that is angry with how the government calculates inflation thinks that it's simply a part of a grand conspiracy to inflate the U.S. currency. As a result, they often argue for the gold standard, because they assert that will eliminate any potential mistakes. This can be addressed, at length, at a future time. For those of us who aren't conspiracy theorists that see an arbitrary commodity standard as the only answer, there is another alternative: reform the way the price indices are calculated.

Let's look at a few of the major criticisms of the way the Bureau of Labor Statistics measures inflation.

Weighting

In order to calculate a price index, BLS must weighs each sort of good in its basket. Martenson provides a pretty strong argument that the current weighting system has flaws, using health care premiums as an example:

According to the BLS, the average family is projected to have a total exposure to rising health insurance premiums at a rate of only 0.49% (out of 100%). Given a median family income of $49,077 (the 2009 value), this means that the BLS assumes that the average family contributes just $239 dollars per year towards their healthcare insurance premiums. Yes, I wrote per year, not per month. That's not a typo.

Of course, this is possible to improve. There are statistics available on how much money households spend on various goods and services. The weights used should be reviewed and revised to better reflect reality.

Hedonics

BLS also utilizes something called "hedonics" in their methodology. This takes technological changes into account and lowers the price based on purchasing power. An example of this problem is provided by Arends:

Or consider the case of Apple computers. We all know Macs are expensive. And we know Apple doesn't discount. The cheapest Mac laptop today costs $999. A few years ago, it also cost $999. So the price is the same, right?

Ha. Not according Uncle Sam. Using a piece of chicanery called "hedonics," Uncle Sam calls this a price cut. His reasoning? You're getting more for the money. Today's $999 Mac is lighter, fancier and faster than last year's $999 Mac. So the government calculates that the "real" price has actually fallen.

It's pretty to understand why hedonics makes sense in theory. People are getting more technology for their money. But it's also pretty easy to understand why it is flawed -- they are still using $999 to purchase a computer, in the example above. And generally, people don't have an option to buy the older model for cheaper, so they end up spending the same amount of money they did in the past for what is ultimately the same sort of end product.

And that's a possible prescription for how to make hedonics work. In situation where the inferior technology is still available and now cheaper, then it can be taken into account. But in cases where there's no substitute, then the new product's price should be fully utilized.

Backwards Looking Nature

Another complaint from Arends is that the price index is backward looking. Unfortunately, there's no perfect solution to this problem. But you can make sure it's updated regularly so the weights used more accurately depict consumer behavior. One possible methodology could use a 3-year average that resets weights at the beginning of each year. This might be imperfect, but unless something dramatic happens regarding consumer behavior, it shouldn't generally be too far off.

General Mistrust in the Government

Finally, many people who worry about accurate inflation estimates assert that the government simply can't be trusted to make these calculations. But that's easy to fix too -- let third-party, private firms do it instead. Have the government outsource the work to, say, three consultancy firms, banks, or accounting firms that can gather and crunch the data needed to create these reports. Then, average their results. Finally, create a large rotation of a dozen or more of these firms, so that you can ensure that a few firms don't get too cozy with government officials.


There could very well be some validity in the argument that government price indices aren't accurate. But that doesn't mean the solution is necessarily to chuck the whole system. Changes could be made that would provide better inflation statistics.

(http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2011/01/should-the-government-reform-how-it-measures-inflation/70292/)

Tunisia's Crisis A Wake Up Call For Indonesia

http://egagah.blogspot.com: Protesters enraged over soaring unemployment and corruption
drove Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali

Years ago nobody in Tunisia would believe that ordinary people could trigger massive rallies which ended up by the toppling of the president.

However, the story is different when a 26-year-old university graduate Mohammed Bouazizi was forced to scratch out a living by peddling fruits and vegetables because he could not find a job and committed suicide by burning himself in front of a crowd on December 17, 2010.

According to a report by Indonesia's Antara news agency it was said that Bouazizi was very upset when the police tried to seize his produce.

Bouazizi's action soon reaped the public sympathy especially from unemployed youngsters. Protests have spread from the central town of Sidi Bouzid to other parts of the country since the December tragic incident. On January 15, President Ben Ali resigned and fled in disgrace to Saudi Arabia after 23 years in power.

alexemdi.wordpress.com

A professor from the University of Indonesia Zainuddin Djafar said Indonesia must draw a lesson from the Tunisian crisis for such a condition might also happen in Indonesia.

Zainuddin said the revolution in Tunisia originally came from its people's frustration toward the government which, according to them had totally failed to give them prosperity and make improvements.

The increasing prices of basic needs and worsening unemployment, besides a corrupt and anti-critic government were considered as factors which triggered the so-called Jasmine Revolution in Tunisia.

"The revolution has previously been predicted by western observers saying that developing countries with a majority of muslims including Indonesia are the most vulnerable to experience it," Zainuddin said.

He said during recent years fundamental problems such as rising prices of basic needs and low income could trigger public outrage.

"Learning from Tunisia's tragedy, I suggest the Indonesian government to work harder in eradicating corruption and increasing the people's welfare. A drastic change is needed," he said, adding that Indonesia had a great potential to be bigger if corruption in the country could be eradicated, or at least reduced.

Why did it happen? Tension has been simmering in the region since the attempted suicide of Bouazizi.

When police seized his produce because he did not have the necessary permit, he doused himself with gasoline and set himself alight, said the Tunisian League for the Defense of Human Rights.

Bouazizi was rushed the a hospital in Tunis with severe burns.

The incident triggered violent demonstrations in which protesters burned old tires and chanted slogans demanding jobs.

The government said the violence was isolated and had been exploited by the opposition.

Tension heightened on December 22 when another young man, Sidi Bouzid, climbed up an electric pylon and electrocuted himself on the cables, saying he was fed up being constantly unemployed.

The government would not confirm the suicide, but ordered a judicial investigation into the circumstances of his death.

On Friday, flags flew at half-mast and state television broadcast prayers from the Koran as Tunisia began national mourning for the 78 people who officials say were killed when security forces cracked down on the wave of social protests that began last month.

The government has declared three days of mourning and major democratic reforms such as the release of all political prisoners, complete media freedom and the registration of previous banned political movements -- including the Islamist Ennahdha.

But one protester held up a sign reading "Our President" next to a photograph of Bouazizi, the 26-year-old fruit vendor who inspired the uprising against Ben Ali by setting himself on fire last month.

(BERNAMA)

E-Government Sees Online Payment Boom

Last year saw a 65% increase in payments collected through the Dubai eGovernment ePay payment gateway as compared to 2009, according to statistics released by Dubai eGovernment.

AED2.5 billion was collected from 1.8 million transactions through the ePay system for all participating government departments by the end of December 2010. AED1.7 million was collected in total in 2009.

"These results clearly indicate the favourable pace of eTransformation in Dubai and also reflect the increasing adoption of ePay as a preferred mode of payment to complete government transactions on one hand, and the confidence shown by customers in the efficiency and safety of this option on the other," said Ahmed Bin Humaidan, director general of Dubai eGovernment .

Government departments participating in the ePay system include Dubai Customs, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) and Dubai Municipality.

These departments were also the top earners in 2010 in terms of money collected throughout 2010. The Roads and Transport Authority, DEWA and Dubai Customs were the top three government entities in terms of the number of transactions logged in 2010.

"This service allows both corporate and individual customers to complete ePayment for government services through three ways - credit cards, e-dirham and direct debit from the customer's account in participating banks," said Bin Humaidan.

According to the director general, credit card payments were the most popular option with amounts collected topping AED2.136 billion. Direct debit payments saw growth from 26,357 transactions in 2009 to 54,538 transactions in 2010.

"All government departments need certain electronic ingredients and infrastructures to offer high quality and secure online services aimed at attracting customers and encouraging them to adopt the option of completing their transactions online. In line with this, Dubai eGovernment strives to offer the required ingredients in the shape of centralized services and a joint infrastructure, enabling these departments to provide facilitated services to the public while offering them a suitable ground for concentration and innovation in their respective scopes of activity," said Bin Humaidan

The Dubai eGovernment recently signed an agreement with the UAE Central Bank to add new banks to its ePay gateway by connecting with the UAESWITCH at UAE Central Bank.

This move will allow corporate or individual customers to settle government departments' fees through its ePay portal using ATM cards or through pre-paid cards. Forty-six banks are now included in the ePay system.

(UNPAN)

India: Public Service is Govt’s Priority

Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Sunday said public service and provision of basic amenities to the masses was the agenda of the government and all out resources were being utilised for this purpose.

According to a handout issued on Sunday, he said the mobile units were being provided to the backward areas people of the province as provision of modern health facilities and Daanish Schools were also being established for extending quality education to the masses of Punjab.

Presiding over a high level meeting regarding provision of education and health facilities for rural areas of Punjab, he said Punjab government was implementing a comprehensive strategy for generation of job opportunities and accelerating economic activities in the province.

“The projects for the provision of education, health and basic facilities to the people are being executed expeditiously,”he added. Senator Shahbaz said only people had the right over national resources and therefore, every penny of public money was being utilised in a transparent manner in providing basic facilities to the masses of Punjab.

He said the revolutionary projects of establishment of Daanish schools in backward areas would open new avenues of progress in these regions and these educational institutions would result in the improvement of education sector as well as literacy rate.

The CM said that setting up of Punjab Education Endowment Fund for providing assistance to the students, facing financial problems in pursuing their academic activities had left a positive impact on education sector and talented and deserving students of all the four provinces inclusive of Azad Kashmir were benefiting from this fund which had also strengthened national solidarity.

He said that provision of IT labs with internet facility in more than 4,000 schools of the province and encouragement of students showing good performance in examinations had also yielded positive results.

(UNPAN)

China is On The Cyber-Warpath, and We Could be Its Next Target

In 2008, monks in the Office of His Holiness The Dalai Lama had suspicions that someone was reading their e-mail. For example, when they followed up on an e-mail request to meet with a diplomat, they would find that a Chinese representative had just called to discourage the get-together.

There were other signs, too, that something was amiss. Confidential documents and sensitive information were leaked.

Was there a spy in their ranks? Had someone cracked their computers?
Discreetly, the monks started making inquiries with Western security experts. They wound up at the doorstep of Information Warfare Monitor, a group of researchers based at the University of Toronto and led by a political scientist named Ronald J. Deibert.

Deibert jumped at the chance to investigate security lapses threatening one of the highest profile religious leaders on the planet.

Information Warfare Monitor investigators found that the Dalai Lama’s network had been infected with malware — malicious software that covertly infiltrates a computer system.

This malware program had been shopping for sensitive files, embedding them in innocuous-looking messages and shipping them out through e-mail. The investigators called their discovery “GhostNet.”

Was Beijing behind GhostNet? We know that Chinese officials detained a student at the Nepalese-Tibetan border on charges of “political activity” and confronted her with a complete transcript of all her Internet chats over the previous two years.

Where did they get all that information? One suspects it came from GhostNet.

Odds are GhostNet never came up in discussions during Chinese President Hu Jintao’s state visit to Washington last week. Between the grip-and-grins and the public palaver, how much time was there to bring up reports of Chinese cyber-snooping into U.S. government computers and those of other Western powers?

Surely President Barack Obama didn’t dwell on the Red Hacker Alliance, a Beijing-sanctioned “network security” organization.

Though Beijing is keenly interested in cyber-communications, it’s not at all into online freedom. Both the Ministry of Public Safety and the State Secrecy Bureau have cyber-security units at all levels of government.

Their ranks number in the hundreds of thousands and include college students who do part-time “online law enforcement” in exchange for computer and Internet access. The government also employs technologies to block and censor online content. YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Blogger and Wikipedia are all blocked in China.

Beyond doubt, China is the No. 1 threat to both U.S. cybersecurity and Internet freedom. But during the runup to Hu Jintao’s visit, Defense Secretary Robert Gates eschewed confronting Beijing on these issues. Instead, he proposed more bilateral military consultative talks to build “trust and confidence” between the two sides.

However the White House wants to frame U.S.-China relations, it needs to get more serious about cyber threats. Otherwise the president may awaken one day to find Beijing reading his Blackberry.

(www.sfexaminer.com)

Azerbaijan Forms National Information Security System

http://en.trend.az

Azerbaijan forms a national information security system, said Rasim Aliguliyev, director of the Information Technologies Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Azerbaijan.

"In 2008, Azerbaijan joined the European Convention on Cybercrime. By taking this step, Azerbaijan uses the common efforts and mechanisms of participating countries to combat cybercrime."

According to him, today the information struggle in the global space has acquired a very deep and sharp character. "In the information war, the threat comes from all sides.

In accordance with the scientific and technological advances, the methods and weapons in this war are changing. Azerbaijan has the right to use these methods, and present the country's realities to the world community in the virtual space," said the director.

(UNPAN)

Australia Unprepared for Cyber Attacks!

The head of cyber security at BAE Systems Australia is calling for expanded training for cyber security experts in Australia; he believes that there is a lack of proper training and there must be greater cooperation between the government and the private sector; a government report finds that the Australian government is underprepared for cyber security threats; in February 2010 hackers brought down the government’s main site and the parliament's homepage for two days

Tim Scully, the head of cyber security at BAE Systems Australia, recently pointed to the dramatic need to increase training in cyber security in Australia.

In an interview with iTWire, Scully said, “There are a lot of people out there who could do the work but the problem is they need serious training and there is a dearth of formal training that would get them up to the level where they can be credibly employed and where clients will be happy to take them on board.”

Scully urged for more cooperation between the private sector and the government to put a greater emphasis on training.

He says that universities offer a good foundation for cyber security experts, “but industry needs to start building the capability to provide more education and training in cyber security.”

Scully’s calls to bolster cyber security training come on the heels of a government report that blasts the Australian government for not being adequately prepared for cyber attacks.

The report concludes that Australia is at “a tipping point where the current trajectory of cyber responses is being rapidly outpaced by the evolving threat.”

According to UPI, more than a million Australian computers are attacked by malicious hackers each year. The Australian Defense Department receives more than 200 attacks on its networks each month.

The report goes on to say that,”A large part of the Australian population doesn’t comprehend the scale of the growing cyberthreat nor the potential impact of that threat on personal and national wellbeing. That lack of understanding, and therefore commitment to addressing that threat, is a fundamental weakness in the individual and collective security of Australians.”

In February of 2010 hackers around the world brought down the Australian government’s main site as well as the Australian parliament’s homepage for two days.

The group responsible for the attack, Anonymous, announced that “government websites will remain down as long as we can keep them down. That could be anywhere from a few hours to a few months.”

The attacks came as a protest against the Australian government’s decision to introduce a broad national Internet filter that would block access to sites that included material like rape, drug use, bestiality, and child sex abuse.



(HSNW)

Open Source Software And Cyber Defense

Federal enterprises and the IT fabric, important to a country's economy, are routinely employing open source software. Therefore, the study of this paper focuses on Commercial Open Source Software (COSS) as a secure implementation that results in good security engineering practices when used in integrated solutions

Therefore the paper suggests that Open Source software results in more secure systems. The key trends of Open Source Software are examined in this paper and it offers facts on the enhanced security features that particularly hold relevant for a White House cyber review.

The US government and several allied nations are regularly involved in providing information to the public about possible and harmful internet threats. They also provide information on intrusions into government and industry computers due to organized crime, malicious codes, from foreign militaries, and the intelligence services of foreign countries including Russia and China.

US INFRASTRUCTURE

The threats have gone to an extent where they are being highlighted every year in congressional testimony. Numerous discussions are being undertaken on the issue and large amounts of information is being shared in a wide range of venues. This paper discusses Open Source software as a computer software for which the source code and other rights are provided under a software license.

This allows users to use, change and improve the software and redistribute it in an altered or the same form. Because open source software is developed in an open, public, collaborative manner, it does not only imply having access to the source code.

(www.techrepublic.com)

Smartphone ‘Apps’ for Local Authorities

kentucky.inetgiant.com

Most councils are now developing or looking to develop smartphone ‘apps’ to complement some of their web information and services. But what is the best way to go about it? This issue, we ask Lichfield District council webmaster and techie blogger Stuart Harrison – pictured above (  http://www.pezholio.co.uk ) – for the secrets behind his council’s successful first steps into this brave new world.

E-Government Bulletin: Lichfield has developed an iPhone app called ‘ratemyplace’ to find local restaurants and see their hygiene ratings. How did it come about?

Stuart Harrision: “We built Ratemyplace a few years ago as a website ( http://www.ratemyplace.org.uk ), and because of the nature of the data – restaurant food safety inspections – I thought it would be an ideal fit for an iPhone application. People can find restaurants close to them and see how clean their kitchens are.

“I used a toolkit call Titanium Appcelerator ( http://www.appcelerator.com ), which allows you to build apps using HTML and Javascript, so it was pretty quick to develop without having to learn Objective C (the programming language that iPhone apps are developed in), and all the data is fetched from the Ratemyplace API.

“Overall user numbers are difficult to get, but we get roughly about five downloads a week.”

EGB: What other apps are you working on?

SH: I’m currently working on a tourism app, but this will be a ‘webapp’, which works on iPhone, Android and Blackberry (using jQuery mobile – http://jquerymobile.com ) rather than one built specifically for the iPhone app store.

EGB: How easy is it to make for councils to make an app, and get it into the iPhone app store?

SH: If you’re using a toolkit such as Titanium Appcelerator, very easy. All you need to know is HTML and Javascript. We have to pay 99 US Dollars per year to be a registered developer, but that’s the only real cost involved, apart from time.

To get them onto the iPhone store, the actual upload process is the most fiddly part! Lots of creating certificates and uploading them to Apple, but the review process (which I’d heard was labyrinthine) was pretty quick, and the app was on the app store within five days.

EGB: Should people concentrate on the iPhone, or try to develop for other smartphones too?

SH: Titanium Appcelerator allows you to build your app for Android phones with very little work, but as I don’t have an Android phone to test with I haven’t built the Ratemyplace app for Android yet. This is part of the reason I’m moving across to webapps, which work on all smartphones.

EGB: What are the potential benefits of smartphone apps for local authorities?

SH: GPS (satellite location) really helps, people can report problems when they’re out and about quickly and easily. The team dealing with the call will also know the exact location of the problem, so they can deal with it quickly and efficiently.

GPS also helps people to see what’s going on where they are, be it food safety ratings, planning applications, or even local events.

EGB: How important a part of the mix are apps going to become for online local services?

SH: There are already predictions that mobile internet usage is going to outstrip desktop in the next few years, so optimising your web offerings for mobile is going to become increasingly important.

You can also make your websites location-aware pretty easily these days, and this is going to expand to being able to upload pictures and video soon, so I can see a lot of apps moving away from the app store environment to web applications, which are easier to develop and more open. We’re a long way off from being able to make something like Angry Birds as a web app however [Editor’s note: the addictive game ‘Angry Birds’ is an app phenomenon – see  http://www.rovio.com ].

EGB: What are the best apps out there that you have seen made by other councils?

SH: Warwickshire have built a good one, giving you information on nearby council facilities, as well as news, jobs and events (see http://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/iphone). Kirklees and Birmingham have also developed a new app which allows you to report problems to the council ( http://bit.ly/h0L9X0 ).

EGB: And finally, what are the secrets of a good/compelling app?

SH: It needs to be simple to use, and quick. People’s attention spans are much shorter when they’re using mobile devices, so give them the most important information first, and then give them the opportunity to drill down. If you’re building an iPhone app, don’t get too creative, stick to the native design. It’s what people are used to, plus Apple spend millions a year on usability research – you probably won’t be able to improve on that!



(E-Government Bulletin #327| Dan Jellinek)

Online Doctor-Patient Consultation This Year

en.medic4all.it

Thailand is about to get a new online medical system called Home Medical, allowing people to communicate and interact with doctors from their own homes, thanks to a cooperative project involving five government ministries.

The manager of Ramathibodi Hospital's Cardiovascular and Metabolic Centre, Khanat Kruthkul, said the hospital was studying the provision of a pilot home-healthcare project that would allow elderly and disabled patients to consult doctors from their homes via an online network.

The pilot will be launched this year, with an initial focus on Ramathibodi's elderly and disabled patients.

In a first stage, not only will elderly and disabled patients be able to access and communicate with doctors, but the doctors will also be able to monitor patients' conditions and ask them to describe symptoms from their homes.

The project is covered by a Memorandum of Understanding signed by the ministries of public health, information and communications technology, education, industry, and science and technology.

Moreover, the cooperative project created by the memorandum aims to develop healthcare-information standards and apply them to healthcare information and patient files handled within the Thailand e-Government Interoperability Framework. This will enable government hospitals to update patient databases and access patient data via the online network, providing for safe referral of patients among hospitals, management of emergencies, and support for the teleconsultant system.

"I think the pilot project will help to reduce the complexity of patient information among hospitals, which will lead to reduced time needed when consulting a doctor," Khanat said.

A consultant to the Thailand e-Government Interoperability Framework, Somnuk Kirito, said cooperation between the five ministries had created an interoperable healthcare-information standard which now allowed 350 hospitals around the country to communicate and transfer patient data. This allows the hospitals to access information and data in 35 categories of patient healthcare-information files.

Information and Communications Technology Ministry permanent secretary Jirawan Boonperm said the project was part of government services that would create Smart Thailand and support the ICT Master Plan for the years up to 2020.

The cooperative project is a pilot for integration of assistance between government agencies that will help to achieve universal access to information and knowledge and improve the quality of life of Thai people.

"I think the project will offer standardisation for connecting and transferring information among government agencies, and this will enable access to information in real time, reduce time, reduce complexity of information and create efficiency among government agencies," she said.

Jirawan said the ICT ministry would expand the cooperative project and work with other government agencies, such as the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry, to standardise information to support e-government services.

allshabelle.com

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said cooperation between the ministries would drive standardisation of government information, enabling different agencies to transfer and access information over the online network. As this will include healthcare information, it will help to improve the quality of life. The use of technology will also create easy access to healthcare services and this, in turn, will develop Thailand's competitiveness, he said

(THE NATION)