Mengapa Ada Beberapa Orang Yang Tidak Suka dengan "Smart Government"

Sejak kita meluncurkan konsep "Smart Government" Saya mengamati ada sejumlah klien pemerintah, beberapa pemasok teknologi pemerintah dan bahkan sejumlah kolega saya sendiri yang nampaknya tidak menangkap nilai penting dan berbagai nuansa yang melekat pada konsep Smart Government.

Penyebabnya hampir pasti disebabkan konotasi istilah "smart" yang kerap dikaitkan dengan substansi-substansi seperti "kota", "planet", "komunitas" dan--tentu saja--"pemerintah". Terminologi yang biasanya merujuk pada bagaimana daerah-daerah perkotaan atau kawasan dapat menjadi lebih sukses meraih sasaran dan kesinambungan pembangunan melalui pengerahan dan mendayagunakan sebuah paduan infrastruktur ( termasuk berbagai jaringan berbasis sensor), pertukaran data dan berbagai analitik, dan aplikasi-aplikasi yang memungkinkan sistem-sistem berbeda terlihat dan terkoordinasi sebagai sebuah keutuhan.

Jadi saat anda memandang sejumlah contoh "Smart city" di dunia, anda kerap melihat satu atau beberapa diagram mengilustrasikan interkoneksi dan interaksi antara berbagai ragam sistem umum yang mengawasi keamanan publik, manajemen lalu-lintas, distribusi energi, penganggaran, manajemen sumber daya dan seterusnya. Smart telah menjadi sebuah sinonim kolaborasi antara berbagai domain yang berbeda, dan biasanya menerapkan pengoperasian berbagai teknologi real time mendampingi teknologi informasi yang lebih tradisional. 

Pemahaman semacam ini bukanlah Smart Government. Smart Government adalah  mengejar kesinambungan nilai publik dengan meniadakan satu atau beberapa proses yang tumpang tindih pada berbagai domain atau yuridiksi, dengan melakukan hal itu tercapai cara yang evolusioner dan lebih mudah.

Pendekatan-pendekatan Smart Government dapat digunakan--tentu saja-- agar dapat dengan bijak mengembangkan  inisiatif Smart Government yang berkelanjutan. Tetapi pendekatan-pendekatan itu juga sama pentingnya untuk mengembangkan sebuah kanal strategi biaya efektif, agar lebih sukses untuk mewujudkan sebuah inisiatif layanan  bersama/shared service, untuk menggabungkan data dan aplikasi-aplikasi kedalam sebuah domain spesifik (seperti pelayanan kesehatan atau keselamatan publik) diseluruh tingkatan pemerintah.

Smart Government bukan ; pengeluaran yang mewah, sasaran jangka panjang, dan filem-filem fiksi ilmiah. Smart Government adalah bagaimana menghadapi kenyataan yang keras dalam pengetatan anggaran-anggaran, lingkungan ekonomi dan politik yang serba tak menentu, perubahan kebutuhan masyarakat, bagaimana menjaga kelangsungan layanan-layanan pokok dan tetap mampu berinovasi.

Smart Government berdampak perubahan-perubahan pada cara departemen-departemen pemerintah dan instansi-instansi berhubungan dengan konstituen-konstituen dan para pemangku kepentingan lainnya, cara mengelola dan mendayagunakan sumberdaya yang ada, cara mereka dalam melakukan perencanaan strategi, utilisasi arsitektur enterprise, menjalankan manajemen portfolio, sumber daya layanan IT, dan bagaimana mereka membentuk peran organisasi-organisasi IT yang dimiliki.

Smart Government adalah sebuah revolusi yang menyeluruh dalam cara pemerintah-pemerintah menggunakan IT, didorong oleh desakan-desakan anggaran, tututan kegesitan dan sebuah kondisi yang serba tak pasti sebagai sebuah kenormalan yang baru. Smart Government memang menantang banyak kebijaksanaan lazim yang telah berakumulasi berdekade-dekade dalam pengeluaran sektor IT, dan nampaknya Smart Government tak terlalu disambut baik oleh mereka yang berkembang didalam "kenormalan pada era lama", mereka bisa jadi adalah para eksekutif pemerintah, konsultan-konsultan atau para pemasok eksternal.

Mungkin inilah penyebab mengapa beberapa orang nampak tidak menerimanya. Bukan karena mereka tak memahaminya. Ini dikarenakan mereka takut terhadap berbagai konsekuensi yang muncul dari Smart Government.

Andrea Di Maio  VP Distinguished Analyst Gartner

blogs.gartner.com | Alih Bahasa : Martin Simamora

Pansus Usut Proses Tender e-KTP

Komisi II DPR akan membentuk panitia khusus (pansus) untuk mengusut dugaan pelanggaran dalam proses tender pengadaan perangkat kartu tanda penduduk elektronik (e-KTP). Anggota Komisi II DPR Agus Poernomo mengatakan, pansus tersebut akan dibentuk pada masa sidang seusai Lebaran, yakni September nanti.“Pansus e-KTP ini akan fokus dibicarakan nanti setelah Lebaran, sebab pada sidang terakhir banyak pertanyaan tentang proses tender yang tidak bisa dijawab Dirjen Adminduk Kemendagri,” tegas Agus kepada SINDO di Jakarta kemarin.

Dia menjelaskan, pembahasan Pansus e-KTP di internal Komisi II DPR diprediksi akan berjalan alot, terutama jika benar ada partai politik yang bermain dan mengambil keuntungan melalui tender senilai Rp5,8 triliun tersebut. “Arahnya pembentukan pansus, dan dinamika yang berkembang pasti akan alot, terutama jika ada anggota DPR maupun parpol yang bermain di proyek ini. Seperti itu dugaan dan kemungkinan yang bisa kami baca,”jelasnya.

Politikus Partai Keadilan Sejahtera (PKS) ini mengatakan, jika Pansus e-KTP resmi dibentuk, nantinya pengusutan lebih detail akan dilakukan. Semua pihak yang terkait dan terlibat dalam proses tender bisa saja dipanggil untuk dimintai keterangan. Baik dari pihak panitia tender, pemenang tender, pihak yang kalah tender, maupun semua yang memiliki kaitan dengan proses tersebut.

Pansus juga bisa mendalami platform program serta detail masalah teknis lainnya. “Kita ingin pansus ini bisa menemukan kalau memang ada permainan dalam tender, sebab kami ingin agar program ini berjalan baik sesuai aturan undang-undang dan manfaatnya besar. Kalau ada yang menyelewengkan dan mengambil keuntungan pribadi dan kelompok, tentu harus dibongkar,” tegasnya.

Sebelumnya, Direktur Eksekutif Government Watch (Gowa) Andi Syahputra melaporkan, ada indikasi permainan dan kongkalikong dalam proses tender e-KTP ke Komisi PemberantasanKorupsi(KPK). Menanggapi hal ini, Menteri Dalam Negeri (Mendagri) Gamawan Fauzi meyakini proses tender e-KTP tidak ada penyelewengan ataupun kesalahan.

Menurut dia, pihak panitia tender dari Kemendagri juga sudah sangat terbuka dan mengajak semua pihak ikut mengawasinya. Demi menjamin hal tersebut,Gamawan bahkan mengaku siap mempertaruhkan kariernya sebagai menteri untuk kesuksesan proyek e-KTP. Mantan Gubernur Sumatera Barat ini mengaku siap mundur jika kementerian yang dipimpinnya gagal menyelesaikan proyek e-KTP tersebut.

“Saya siap mundur. Kalau gagal malu,karena e-KTP ini memakai uang negara. Bagi saya, ini juga persoalan harga diri, sebab kalaupun saya tak ikut tender, tapi saya bertanggung jawab sebagai menteri. Saya harus berani ambil risiko,” tegasnya.

Meski demikian,Gamawan mengaku tidak kaget atas dugaan penyimpangan proses tender e-KTP yang dilaporkan Gowa. Dia justru balik mengatakan bahwa pihak yang mengganggu dan terus mempermasalahkan proses tender e-KTP datang dari kalangan orang yang kecewa atas hasil tender.

“Orang yang tidak puas terus mengganggu. Mereka minta diulang, ini kan permainan. Bahkan, ada orang yang tidak mengerti seperti apa proses maupun peraturannya ikutikutan protes. Saya kira media sudah tahu siapa yang bermainmain dalam hal ini,”tegasnya.

Sementara itu, Direktur Pengelolaan Informasi Administrasi Kependudukan Ditjen Kependudukan dan Pencatatan Sipil Kemendagri Sugiharto melalui kuasa hukumnya, Hotma Sitompoel, pelaksanaan pengadaan barang dan jasa dalam proyek e-KTP sudah dijalankan sesuai peraturan hukum yang berlaku, dengan bekerja sama dan di bawah pengawasan seluruh instansi.

“Termasuk nilai pengadaan blangko chip yang merupakan bagian dari RAB dan HPS yang sudah di-review oleh BPKP dan sudah disampaikan oleh mendagri kepada KPK dan BPK, dinyatakan sangat efisien dibandingkan dengan nilai proyek sejenis di luar negeri,maupun biaya yang dibutuhkan di dalam negeri,” tegas Hotma kepada SINDO.

Terkait pernyataan Direktur Eksekutif Gowa yang seolah- olah menyatakan adanya mark up nilai pengadaan blangko chip, Hotma menyebutkan pernyataan tersebut tidak berdasar sama sekali, fitnah, tendensius, menyesatkan, serta dapat merusak dan mengganggu jalannya proyek pemerintah.

Menurut Hotma, pernyataan Gowa yang mengatakan bahwa harga blangko chip berkapasitas 8 kilobit di pasar domestik seharga tidak lebih dari Rp10.000, adalah tidak benar dan menyesatkan.“Faktanya, di Indonesia tidak ada pasaran domestik yang memproduksi blangko KTP elektronik yang berbahan dasar PTE dan dilengkapi dengan chip,” tegasnya.

seputar-indonesia.com

Philippine Presidency Outlines Social Media Strategy

Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. stressed the important role of new media in pursuing the government’s Social Contract with the citizens.

According to Coloma, digital tools could be a very effective platform in bringing the government much closer to the people, establishing a healthy environment as the country inches its way towards progress and development.

“Continuing conversation and extensive consultations, from the innermost depths of ourselves, from our core… that is what the president would like to know, what is it that we truly feel about the issues that affect us in our country today,” Coloma said in an official statement.

The PCOO Secretary said that the government assures the people of a responsive and people-centered medium to directly address their concerns on certain issues, moving to accountability practices and excellence to provide responsive online citizen-centered services with the use of several media simultaneously.

“The significant data.gov is the kind of approach that is being adapted by many countries in our region, and they would like to make social media a tool to make the government more accessible,” Coloma noted, expressing the government’s plan to emulate the said portal.

The secretary added that this is a first for a Filipino Chief Executive to institutionalise a new media strategy through the PCOO and the establishment of his own website, the president.gov.ph. and such development was due to the fact that the president relied quite significantly on the internet and the mobile media in his campaign for the presidency in May, 2010.

UNPAN Europe

Proyek e-KTP Dilaporkan ke KPK

Media Indonesia

Program e-KTP belum genap satu tahun digulirkan. Namun, proyek itu sudah dilaporkan sebuah lembaga swadaya masyarakat ke Komisi Pemberantasan Korupsi (KPK). Pelapornya, Government Watch (Gowa), menilai negara telah dirugikan lebih dari Rp1 triliun dalam pelaksanaan proyek tersebut.

"Proses pelelangan sejak dari perencanaan, pengajuan anggaran hingga pelaksanaan lelang patut diduga sarat dengan kepentingan pihak tertentu. Semua diarahkan pada pengaturan dukungan pada satu konsorsium perusahaan. Karena itu, kami mendesak proses pelelangan dibatalkan," ujar Andi W Syahputra, Direktur Eksekutif Gowa, di kantor KPK, Selasa 23 Agustus 2011.

Andi mengatakan penentuan kriteria pemenang tender dengan nilai sebesar itu seharusnya berdasarkan kemampuan secara menyeluruh dari sistem yang ditawarkan. Terutama dalam hal AFIS (Automated Fingerprint Identification System) dan jaringan komunikasi peserta lelang. Menurutnya, pembuktiannya harus dengan rekam jejak yang pernah dilakukan.

"Anehnya, pemenang tender dengan pagu Rp6,3 triliun rupiah ini justru lebih didasarkan pada kinerja pengadaan barang-barang kecil yang sifatnya tidak setara dengan pagu tender," ungkapnya.

Gowa sempat mengadakan sebuah investigasi sejak tanggal 27 Maret hingga 10 Agustus 2011. Hasilnya adalah terlihat dengan cukup kasat mata tentang dugaan kolusi dalam penyelenggaraan lelang pengadaan e-KTP tahun 2011 itu.

Menurut Andi, lelang yang diadakan oleh Direktorat Jenderal Kependudukan dan Pencatatan Sipil Kementrian Dalam Negeri RI terindikasi cukup kuat terjadi pengaturan agar tender dimenangkan oleh salah satu konsorsium, yakni PNRI. Selain itu, juga ada indikasi dugaan permainan terkait kualifikasi badan penilai.

"Seharusnya Kemendagri menunjuk badan independen untuk menjadi penilai yang independen terhadap semua proposal teknis yang masuk. Kemendagri justru menggunakan tenaga ahli yang tidak pernah menghasilkan sistem kependudukan handal. Ini tetap saja terjadi, dengan menghamburkan triliunan uang rakyat," lanjut Andi.

vivanews.com

KPK Masih Telaah Dugaan Korupsi e-KTP

Komisi Pemberantasan Korupsi (KPK) membantah telah membuat rekomendasi kepada Kementerian Dalam Negeri terkait proyek pengadaan Kartu Tanda Penduduk Elektronik (E KTP).

Juru Bicara KPK Johan Budi menegaskan, kerjasama KPK dengan Kemendagri bukan untuk proyek pengadaan E KTP, akan tetapi kajian penggunaan E KTP untuk menerapkan Single Identity Number (SIN) sebagai upaya pencegahan kasus korupsi dan pencucian uang.

"Kalau proyek pengadaan E KTP, KPK nggak ikut. Kalau pengadaan itu ada LKPP dan auditnya ada di BPK," kata Johan Budi di Kantor KPK, Kamis malam, 25 Agustus 2011.

Sementara terkait laporan dugaan korupsi pengadaan E KTP oleh Government Watch (GOWA), Selasa lalu, yang mencapai Rp1 triliun, Johan mengatakan laporan tersebut tengah ditelaah di Bagian Pengaduan Masyarakat KPK (Dumas KPK).

"Masih kita telaah di Dumas. Tidak mungkin setiap orang lapor, terus besoknya sudah ada yang jadi tersangka," pungkasnya.

Sebelumnya laporan investigasi yang dilakuka GOWA sejak Maret hingga Agustus 2011, ditemukan dugaan kolusi pada penyelenggaraan lelang pengadaan e-KTP tahun 2011. Lelang ini diadakan oleh Direktorat Jenderal Kependudukan dan Catatan Sipil Kementerian Dalam Negeri RI.

Hasil audit forensik GOWA tersebut menemukan tak kurang dari 11 penyimpangan, pelanggaran, dan kejanggalan yang kasat mata dalam proses pengadaan lelang tersebut.

GOWA mengklasifikasi fakta penyimpangan selama proses pelaksanaan pengadaan e-KTP dalam tiga tahapan lelang. Tahapan tersebut meliputi sebelum, penyelenggaraan lelang dan pelaksanaan pekerjaan yang dilelangkan.

vivanews.com

PDIP: Proyek e-KTP untuk Kepentingan 2014

news.okezone.com

PDI Perjuangan mendesak agar proyek KTP elektronik atau e-KTP segera dihentikan. PDI Perjuangan mensinyalir proyek ini sarat nuansa politis, terutama jelang Pemilihan Presiden 2014.

"Karena arah target sasarannya sudah sangat politis untuk kepentingan tertentu pada Pemilu 2014," kata Sekretaris Jenderal PDI Perjuangan Tjahjo Kumolo dalam keterangan tertulis, Jumat 26 Agustus 2011.

Menurut Tjahjo, PDI Perjuangan berpendapat sebaiknya hentikan dulu dan evaluasi menyeluruh untuk proyek ini. PDI Perjuangan mendesak pemerintah melibatkan pihak lain untuk mencermati proyek ini.

"Karena nuansa politisnya sangat kental sekali dan sudah berkembang ke arah lain yang tidak proporsional," kata Ketua Fraksi PDI Perjuangan ini.

Maka itu, kata Tjahjo, PDI Perjuangan mendesak agar proyek ini dihentikan daripada menjadi polemik dan tidak dapat mencapai target yang diharapkan Kementerian Dalam Negeri. "Saya kira, Kementerian Dalam Negeri memahami hal ini," ujar Tjahjo.

Karena itu, lanjut Tjahjo, akhirnya banyak pihak mempertanyakan dan sampai pada indikasi dilaporkannya ke KPK. Ada bukti awal yang bisa dipertanggungjawabkan. "Daripada akhirnya terjadi skandal, seharusnya dihentikan dulu," kata Tjahjo.

Tjahjo menegaskan, sejak awal Fraksi PDI Perjuangan di DPR selalu mengkritisi progam e-KTP. Dari mulai perencanaan sampai proses tender dan pelaksanaannya.

.vivanews.com

Post-riot, UK government halts talk of social media shutdown

A police officer in riot gear stands near a burning car in Hackney on August 8, 2011 in London, England. Pockets of rioting and looting continues to take place in various boroughs of London this evening, as well as in Birmingham, prompted by the initial rioting in Tottenham and then in Brixton on Sunday night. It has been announced that the Prime Minister David Cameron and his family are due to return home from their summer holiday in Tuscany, Italy to respond to the rioting. Disturbances broke out late on Saturday night in Tottenham and the surrounding area after the killing of Mark Duggan, 29 and a father-of-four, by armed police in an attempted arrest on August 4.[Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images]

The U.K. government met on Thursday with technology companies for a post-mortem on the violent riots earlier this month, but made clear from the onset that it was no longer considering shutting down services in times of crisis.

Home Secretary Theresa May met with representatives of Facebook, Twitter and Research In Motion, three companies whose services were used by participants in the violent rioting across several U.K. cities.

After the riots, Prime Minister David Cameron said the U.K. would look at "whether it would be right to stop people communicating via these websites and services when we know they are plotting violence." The suggestion that the U.K. could censor social networking services brought wide criticism.

The Home Office said in a statement that the discussions revolved around improving the "technological and related legal capabilities of the police" when dealing with services that are being used for criminal behavior. The Home Office did not mention if it discussed shutting down services with the companies.

Youths loot a Carhartt store in Hackney
on August 8, 2011 in London,
England. Pockets of rioting and
looting continues to take place in
various parts of London this evening
prompted by the initial rioting
in Tottenham and then in Brixton on
Sunday night. Disturbances broke out
late on Saturday night in Tottenham
and the surrounding area after
the killing of Mark Duggan, 29
and a father-of-four,
by armed police in an attempted
arrest on August 4.
[Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images]

But a statement from Facebook said that from the start of the meeting May "set the tone clearly that we were not there to discuss restricting Internet services."

"We welcome the fact that this was a dialogue about working together to keep people safe rather than about imposing new restrictions on Internet services," the statement read.

Facebook did acknowledge that "sometimes we have to be more vigilant or react faster when there are exceptional circumstances," such as the recent shootings in Norway or the riots in the U.K.

"When we are dealing with situations that are heightened or sensitive such as the U.K. riots, then content relating to this specific issue is prioritized," Facebook said. "As a result, the team works around the clock to ensure that take-down times for such content is decreased and content that straddles the line of acceptability is closely monitored."

Facebook said that it processes reports about content that is against its rules to its User Operations teams, which work 24 hours a day around the world. The company has a law enforcement team dedicated to helping U.K. police improve their skills in using the service to handle serious crime.

On Aug. 16, a British court sentenced two men to four years each in prison for using Facebook to try to organize two riots, one of the sternest punishments meted out so far for misbehavior and one that has been criticized as being too harsh. Neither riot actually took place.

Facebook said in its statement that the service was also used for positive actions, such as organizing groups to clean up debris from the streets following the disturbances.

RIM, whose BlackBerry devices are popular with U.K. youth, called the discussions "positive and productive." Young people are thought to buy BlackBerry devices for Messenger, an instant messaging application that allows people to broadcast messages to many users. It has been blamed for enabling youths to quickly mass in key neighborhoods in London and other U.K. cities hit with looting and arson.

Twitter was more oblique and did not mention Thursday's meeting with the government. "We've heard from many that Twitter is an effective way to distribute crucial updates and dispel rumors in times of crisis or emergency," the company said.

networkworld.com

India to e-connect 2500 remote villages

The Government of India has enlisted satellite service provider Hughes Communication to connect 2,500 locations in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and the North East through broadband internet under the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP).

“Today, several thousand common service centres (CSCs) have already been deployed across the country. Using satellite technology, Hughes provides connectivity and other services to more than 10,000 CSCs,” said Pranav Roach, President, Hughes Network Systems India.

vsatnow.net

The government has plans to set up over 1 lakh CSCs across the country to give access to its citizen services through internet. Till date, over 96,000 centres have been set up.

The contract has been awarded by the Department of Information Technology. The total value for the project for 2.5 lakh locations across the country at the panchayat level is Rs 2,000 crore. Out of these 2,500 villages are being connected by Hughes Communication, according to a statement released by the company.

Under the contract, Hughes will supply, install and commission the VSAT terminals in most difficult parts of India where other modes of delivering broadband services are not available. The main objective of this project is to make available broadband access to internet and other digital services available to the users over satellite using latest standards and technologies.

“All VSATs deployed by Hughes will be delivered and installed within 14 weeks,” Roach said.

futuregov.in

Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan quits

"Under the severe circumstances, I feel I've done everything that I had to do," Japan's Prime Minister Naoto Kan said as he announced his resignation. [ Yuriko Nakao  /  REUTERS]

The Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan announced on Friday that he was stepping down after almost 15 months in office as his government's ratings plunged due to handling of nuclear crisis triggered by tsunami.

Kan appeared on national television to announce that he was resigning as the leader of the ruling Democratic Party, effectively ending his tenure as Prime Minister.

His exit paves the way for election of Japan's sixth Prime Minister in five years, as the country is struggling to come out from the devastation caused by March 11 earthquake which triggered a nuclear crisis.

"I resign as the party president effective today", Kyodo news agency quoted him as telling his party leaders. He was the first leader in Japan, not hailing from a well connected political family to don the premiership.

After taking office in June last year, the 64-year-old premier has struggled amid plunging ratings, a relentless power struggle within his party and a combative opposition controlling upper house stalling legislation.

Later he came under fire from his own party lawmakers for his perceived lack of leadership in dealing with the March disaster that claimed the lives of more than 15,000 people and triggered the world's worst nuclear crisis in 25 years.

The ruling Democratic party will vote on Monday to elect a new leader, who will become the next Prime Minister.

Former Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara is viewed as a frontrunner to replace Kan. Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda and Trade Minister Banri Kaieda may also enter the fray.

news.oneindia.in

China State TV Deletes Video Implying Hacking of Western Sites

The main Chinese state television network has deleted from the Internet a video that some foreign military and Internet security analysts say implies China has engaged in hacking attacks on Web sites in the West.

The video was the July 16 episode of a program on China Central Television 7 called “Military Science and Technology.” The episode, called “The Internet Storm is Coming,” was about cyberwarfare.

This week Western analysts began publicly scrutinizing a sequence that a narrator on the program says shows “many Internet attack methods.” There is then a demonstration of one method: on the screen, what appears to be a human-operated cursor chooses a target Web site address, then hits a button that says “attack.”

Using a software application on screen, the cursor chooses a target Web site under a pull-down menu for “Falun Gong Web sites in North America.” Falun Gong is a spiritual group that underwent persecution in the late 1990s in China and is now outlawed in the country.

In the CCTV program, the cursor selects an IP address of 138.26.72.17 as a target. It is a defunct IP address at the University of Alabama. But a screenshot of the page linked to that address that was archived on the Internet in 2000 shows an informational page associated with the Falun Gong. It is unclear who set up the page.

An online article published on China SignPost on Wednesday by two military analysts, Andrew Erickson and Gabe Collins, said there were questions as to whether the television program was using a mock-up to demonstrate cyberwarfare, or whether it revealed real hacking software and an actual attack. The technology shown was at least a decade old, the authors wrote. But “it is significant that an official Chinese state television channel showed even a symbolic representation of a cyberattack, particularly one on entities clearly located in a foreign sovereign nation,” they wrote.

Chinese officials deny repeated assertions by foreign Web security experts and foreign governments that China is the source for many prominent and ambitious attacks.

The discussion among Western analysts over the July 16 episode and its significance began this week when links to screenshots of the episode circulated on the Internet. By Friday, a video of that episode had been removed from a CCTV Web site that still has other recent episodes of “Military Science and Technology.”

CCTV has declined to comment. There has been at least one notable example of the network’s using fake footage in a report on the military: In January, it tried to pass off a scene of a fighter jet getting blown to bits in the 1986 movie “Top Gun” as images of a military training exercise done by the People’s Liberation Army.

nytimes.com

UK: Ministers Attend Social Media Meeting

shockya.com

Home Secretary Theresa May is to chair a meeting today between government ministers, police and representatives of Twitter, Facebook and Blackberry makers Research in Motion to discuss possible measures to prevent the technology being used to organise riots.

Several individuals have already been handed jail sentences for attempting to organise riots using Facebook pages, Twitter and Blackberry Messenger during the unrest in early August.

During an emergency session of Parliament shortly after the riots, Prime Minister David Cameron said the government would be "working with the police, the intelligence services and industry to look at whether it would be right to stop people communicating via these websites and services when we know they are plotting violence, disorder and criminality".

However, there are already signs of a split in the Conservative party over whether it is right for governments to restrict the use of social media, notably from London Mayor Boris Johnson.

Johnson was quoted in the Financial Times as saying: "The briefings I've had so far on this matter make it clear that social media and being able to follow things on Twitter is of some intelligence benefit to the police."

A Home Office spokesman said: "These discussions will help us determine how law enforcement and the networks can work better together.

"Amongst the issues to be discussed is whether and how we should be able to stop people communicating via these websites and services when we know they are plotting violence, disorder and criminality.

"Social networking is not a cause of the recent disturbances but a means of enabling criminals to communicate. We are working with the police to see what action can be taken to prevent access to those services by customers identified as perpetrators of disorder or other criminal action."

UNPAN Europe

Australian state forms e-Health agency

As New South Wales (NSW) Health undergoes a major overhaul, Health Minister Jillian Skinner announced the creation of eHealth NSW, a new agency to look after IT services across the state’s healthcare system.

In addition to assuming ICT responsibilities, eHealth NSW would also take e-health roles that were previously shared between the Department and Health Support Services.

“The new agency aims to drive innovation, improve implementation of vital electronic health initiatives and provide support to the districts and their facilities,” Skinner said in an official statement.

The NSW Health reform was a result of NSW Health director-general Mary Foley’s governance review which reads, “eHealth NSW would become the system leader for the NSW Health information strategy, forward planning and delivery.”

“It is critical that an early objective of eHealth NSW is a re-setting of strategy based on extensive consultation with clinicians and other users and the redesign of ICT governance to ensure clear statewide plans and an appropriate balance with local initiatives.”

According to the Health Minister, the implementation of the revamp would begin immediately and wrap up by the end of the year, freeing up over $80 million for frontline services.

futuregov.asia

Korea signs E-Govt MOU with East Africa

Seoul Metropolitan Government Mayor Oh Se-hoon has signed a memorandum of understanding to increase mutual cooperation in e-government technology and other areas of interest with East African Community (EAC) Secretary General Richard Sezibera.

The EAC, which consists of the republics of Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi and Tanzania, was formed to promote regional cooperation and development.

Sunyoung Jung, Assistant of Seoul Government CIO Dr. Jong-Sung Hwang, told FutureGov, “Together, the EAC and Seoul Metropolitan Government shall strive to work together to enhance e-government for development, establish and strengthen the Information Management Services in the EAC organs, institutions and other relevant institutions in the partner states, with the aim of achieving a paperless EAC, work together to support the development and deployment of key e-government applications, and build ICT Institutional Capacity for the EAC.”

“The partnership will also define the information society through exchange of case studies in e-government applying latest ICT update, strengthen cooperation through exchange of experts, joint training programs, seminars, and forums, improve ICT industry of both Parties by supporting ICT enterprises to cooperate with each other in advancing technology and ensuring development of new markets, and collaborate in any other area of mutual interest agreed between the Parties.”

This is the 12th MOU the Seoul Metropolitan Government has signed with other countries regarding e-government systems, hoping that this will be an opportunity to help solve the digital divide in African regions and strengthen mutual assistance.

futuregov.asia

Malaysia to join Global Cyber Security Alliance

The National Information Technology Council (NITC) will be joining the Global Cyber Security Alliance (GCSA) as a platform to share information on national cyber security with member countries.

Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Datuk Seri Dr Maximus Ongkili, said membership in the GCSA was open to all Organisation of the Islamic Cooperation countries, Asean Regional Forum members and developing countries.

"The proposal to join GCSA has been accepted in a meeting chaired by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

"It will be further looked into by the E-Sovereignty Expert Group headed by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

"We hope in three months that the concept will be finalised and will go to the Cabinet for final approval," he told reporters after attending an NITC meeting with 32 members of the council at the Prime Minister's Office here today.

At that meeting, eight working papers were presented urging the further strengthening of the ICT sector to turn it into the main thrust of the nation’s development.

Further, Ongkili said GSCA would become a network to overcome issues relating to cyber crime, computer attacks and security.

"GSCA membership countries could integrate professional and skilled work resources to carry out ICT training to combat cyber issues and protect the people and national security," he added.

Regarding another concern, he said Malaysia is establishing the Malaysia Industrial Research Consortium on ICT (MiRICT) to further strengthen the Ecosystems Research and Development Framework of National ICT and Innovation.

He said MiRICT, headed by Mimos, would assist in research and help local operators to improve commercially viable ICT products for world markets.

"This is a challenge to ensure Malaysia is an exporter of ICT skills and products," he said.

Apart from that, Ongkili noted that NITC has also agreed to provide its mandate to Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII) to achieve the MS ISO/IEC 27001: 2007 certification on Information Security Management Systems at their respective organisations before February 2013.

Regarding the National Key Economic Area, he said the Ministry of Information Communication and Culture has identified 10 Entry Point Projects (EPP) in communication infrastructure, projected to contribute RM16.6 billion to the Gross Domestic Product and create 25,000 jobs by 2020.

– Bernama

Thai PM Announces Government Urgent, Long-Term Policies

The parliament meeting started from 9:15 a.m. with 484 MPs and 147 senators attended.

Thailand Government Complex Building

dreamstime.com

Yingluck said the Pheu Thai-led government will implement the following eight policies:

• The urgent policies 
• The policy on national security 
• The economic policy 
• The policy on social and quality of life 
• The policy on natural resources and environment 
• The policy on science and technology, research and innovation 
• The policy on foreign affairs and international economics 
• The policy on good governance.

The 44-pages policies are divided into the urgent and long-term polices, which are needed to be implemented in the first year in office and in four-year term, respectively.

Those 16 urgent policies include the policies to create political reconciliation, to fight against drug trafficking, to reduce corporate tax rates and to provide soft loans to the poor.

Before the policy delivery started, approximately 200 red- shirts or the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) members gathered in front of the Parliament compound to show support for the prime minister and her government.

Coming also was the anti-government multi-color group who submitted an open letter to the House Speaker Somsak Kiatsuranont expressing their opposition to some of the government's policies including the move to amend the 2007 Constitution.

The House Speaker announced also that the government coalition and opposition parties had 11 hours each while the senators were allocated 7 hours 40 minutes to scrutinize the government policies.

The joint-sitting will be carried out for two days or August 23- 24. About 450 police officers have been deployed to secure order around the Parliament compound and prevent confrontation between different political groups.

UNPAN Asia & Pacific

Counter Terror Arabia 2011 to showcase latest techniques and technologies of emergency response

Counter Terror Arabia 2011 will showcase the latest techniques and technologies for dealing with terrorists and criminals.

Clarion Events Middle East announced that leading international defence and security experts on counter-terror and criminality will speak at Counter Terror Arabia 2011 on a wide range of current and future issues. The conference will review existing best practice and explore the latest techniques and technologies, alongside strategic planning, the integration of different agencies and authorities and the practical aspects of emergency response for both governments and companies.

Held at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) from October 31 to November 2, 2011, and co-located with Fire and Rescue Middle East, Counter Terror Arabia will be the most influential and informative event for everyone concerned with in regional, national and private security in the Gulf and Indian Ocean area.

Christopher Hudson, Managing Director, Clarion Events Middle East, said: "Some of the world's leading authorities will give their opinions and advice at Counter Terror Arabia 2011.

International and regional defence and security experts will provide a comprehensive analysis on how to tackle the variety of complex challenges posed by domestic and international criminals and terrorists, both now and in the future. We are fortunate in having a distinguished group of speakers and panelists, including His Excellency Dr. Abdul Latif Bin Rashid Al Zayani, Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), and Rear Admiral Christopher Parry CBE, former Director General Development, Concepts and Doctrine, UK Ministry of Defence and an internationally recognized authority on transnational terrorism and crime. Alongside our other speakers, we anticipate a great deal of useful interaction and thought leadership, enhancing the region's growing reputation for innovative thinking and best practice."

As terror and criminal activities transcend national borders, day one of the conference will have John Bruni, Vice President of Royal United Services Institute, highlight the current threats and future risks associated with these activities. Furthermore, Muhammad Rafiuddin Shah, Acting Chief Officer of United Nations Counter Terrorism Implementation Task Force (CTITF) will focus on how a global counter terror strategy can be reached to minimize attacks by those who seek to cause harm and major disruption.

Cyber crime is an established and growing threat to the integrity of civilian, commercial and security structures in the Gulf and Middle East region and forms a key part of the conference programme. Illyas Kooliyankal, Chief Information Security Officer of Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, will speak on cyber vulnerabilities faced by governments and multi-national companies, and Majid Madhloum, Head of Security Quality, UAE Computer Emergency Response Team (aeCERT), will discuss solutions that can protect systems and information from unauthorized access, as well as outline the work of aeCERT in helping government and other important organisations to prepare for and respond to cyber attacks.

A recent report by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) estimates that air travelers will increase to 400 million every year by 2020, thereby making airports increasingly attractive targets for criminals and terrorists.

The GCC is set to invest US$ 90 billion on airport development by 2022, with almost a third allocated for security upgrades and, as such, the programme will tackle innovation in aviation security. Ahmad Al Haddabi, Senior Vice President, Airport Operations, at Abu Dhabi Airports Company and Dale R .Davis, Executive Director, National Security Initiatives, Global Strategies Group, Global Integrated Security (Middle East), will discuss programs for continuous improvement of all aspects of aviation security.

Rear Admiral Christopher Parry, CBE, former Director General of Development Concepts and Doctrine of the British Ministry of Defence, and Clarion's Defence and Security Conferences Advisor, said: "A persistent, pressing concern for governments and companies is the threat of piracy and other criminal activity at sea. The International Maritime Bureau reported that piracy hit an all-time high in the first six months of 2011, rising from 196 attacks a year worldwide to 266. The Gulf and Indian Ocean are critical to the smooth operation of the world's trading system and to energy security. Governments and companies will want to access and implement the latest technologies and techniques in their attempts to reduce risks and overhead costs at sea."

Captain Duncan McKelvie F.N.I., Area Marine Representative of NYK Line, will highlight the threats to maritime activity and the links between piracy, trafficking and terror. In addition, R S Vasan, Head of Strategy and Security Studies at the Center for Asia Studies will speak on the challenges facing the littoral states to the west of the Arabian Sea and how they can protect vessels and crew from piracy and criminality.

Day 3 will focus on integrated Emergency Response. Speakers will discuss how multi-agency responses to both man-made and natural events need to be anticipated, planned and executed. T.B. McClelland Jr., President and CEO of Center House Ltd., will present an analysis of the challenges of managing catastrophic incidents. Other speakers include Dr. Ajith George, Coordinator, Major Incident Medical Response of Health Authority Abu Dhabi; Stephen Ramage, Director, Global Outreach, of Open Geospatial Consortium; and Ali Asad, Emergency Response Coordinator for Kuwait Oil Company.

Other notable participants include: Lieutenant Colonel Tamir Maayta, Director of the Special Branch Training Center of Jordan's Public Security Directorate; Andrew Trotter, Chief Constable of British Transport Police; Robert Grenier, Chairman of the Advisory Board for ERG Partners and Former Director CIA Counter-Terrorist Centre, USA; Kent Clizbe, CIA Counter Terrorism Expert; Ben Emmerson QC, Special Reporter on Counter-Terrorism and Human Rights for the United Nations; Mark Moles, Detective Chief Inspector SO15 Counter Terrorism Command, Counter Terrorism and Extremism Liaison Officer (CTELO) for UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Maldives; Anthony Tompson, LLB, Specialist Consultant; Guy Thomas, Head of Global Maritime Awareness Programme at the US Coastguard's National Office of Global Maritime Situational Awareness; Richard Smith, Head of Force Information Management at British Transport Police; and Paul Burke, Managing Director of Middle East Security.

Visitors to Counter Terror Arabia include personnel from the intelligence services, armed forces, police and law enforcement, protectors of critical national infrastructure, central/regional and local government representatives, private sector companies, systems integrators, and personnel from the building and facilities protection, airports and ports, emergency response, border control, customs and immigration, transport security, training and consultancy sectors.

Organized by Clarion Events Middle East, Counter Terror Arabia is an extension of the successful London and Washington D.C. editions.

ameinfo.com

Chinese Military Documentary Reveals Alleged Attack Software

Government-run TV channel program accidentally reveals what appears to be software designed for cyber warfare.

http://military.cntv.cn/program/jskj/20110717/100139.shtml

A military documentary broadcast in China last month on a government-run TV channel has revealed what appears to be software designed for cyber warfare.

The documentary, titled "Military Technology: Internet Storm is Coming," has been posted to YouTube and was available on the CCTV website at the time this article was filed.

The existence of the software was first reported by The Epoch Times, a publication founded by members of the Falun Gong, a religious organization that's banned in China. The cyber war software--it has a button labeled "Attack" and a menu labeled "Select Attack Destinations" -- lists Falun Gong websites as preset targets.

"The screenshots show the name of the software and the Chinese university that built it, the Electrical Engineering University of China's People's Liberation Army--direct evidence that the PLA is involved in coding cyber-attack software directed against a Chinese dissident group," the Epoch Times report states.

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The distinction between this attack software and penetration testing software used by security researchers around the globe to identify vulnerabilities is probably relatively minor, apart from the aggressive wording of menus and buttons.

In a blog post, Mikko H. Hypponen, chief research officer at F-Secure, notes that the Chinese documentary initially appears to be fairly standard fare about the risks of cyber warfare. "However, while they are speaking about theory, they actually show camera footage of Chinese government systems launching attacks against a U.S. target," he wrote. "This is highly unusual. The most likely explanation is that this footage ended up in the final cut because the editor did not understand the significance of it."


The documentary shows someone choosing the IP address 138.26.72.17 to attack. This address is associated with the University of Alabama in Birmingham, Ala.

A person answering the phone at the domain contact phone number declined to be identified but said that the address has been inactive for several years and had been associated with a website run by a university student involved in Falun Gong.

For years, there have been accusations that the Chinese government has endorsed or sponsored cyberattacks against the U.S. and U.S. companies, most notably the cyberattack from China that Google reported in early 2010. That attack was said to have affected at least 30 companies and organizations. More recently, security company McAfee reported on a series of related attacks that it refers to in aggregate as "Operation Shady Rat."

The U.S. Department of State did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In a speech last year following the attack reported by Google, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, "Countries or individuals that engage in cyber-attacks should face consequences and international condemnation."

The Chinese government has consistently denied that it is involved in cyberattacks and has claimed that it is the biggest victim of cyberattacks.

While the Chinese government has not produced evidence of this, it's clear that China is not the only nation-state conducting cyber warfare operations. The sophisticated Stuxnet cyberattack on Iran's nuclear infrastructure, for example, is widely believed to have come from the U.S. and/or Israel.

.informationweek.com

EIDA stresses role in supporting e-government initiatives

His Excellency Dr Engineer Ali Mohamed Al Khouri, Director General of Emirates Identity Authority (EIDA), the independent federal authority mandated with the Population Register and the National ID Card programme, has emphasised the importance of achieving the Authority’s strategic objectives, including the successful implementation of the digital identity project, considered one of the best strategic projects on the national level. Presiding over a regular review meeting on the implementation process of the digital identity project, Dr Al Khouri stressed the importance of providing all support and data for the Abu Dhabi Centre for e-Systems in order to improve the efficiency of the Abu Dhabi e-Gate by linking it to Emirates ID

The meeting also discussed the scope of the digital identity initiative, progress achieved so far on the strategic project and its time line.Dr Al Khouri highlighted EIDA’s role in supporting e-government initiatives explaining how the Authority will enhance the security environment in the UAE. He also stressed the need to co-operate with the departments involved in the e-government initiative and to implement an effective programme to link these departments with the electronic authentication centre in the Authority. Dr Al Khouri called on government departments to join the digital identity project before the end of 2011 as part of forming strategic partnerships to support UAE’s development. He pointed to the importance of successful application of the project and its contribution in enhancing trust of individuals in the Authority’s systems while dealing with government departments. Such trust will promote use of e-services in the UAE and enrich the concept of a secure e- economy. The meeting also discussed achievements in activating digital identity application across some government departments that have already linked their services to Emirates ID. The attendees were also briefed on service enhancements across EIDA data centers in the country.

smeadvisor.com

Turkmen President: Turkmenistan needs to take urgent measures to introduce "e-government"

Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammadov stressed "taking urgent measures" to broadly implement electronic government document control, the national TV channel "Altyn Asir" reported on Tuesday.

According to the report, the president talked about the change during a video conference with the participants of a workshop meeting on further improving the government's electronic document control, currently being held in Ashgabat.

Berdimuhammadov stressed the need to introduce "this advanced method in all sectors of the national economy".

It is expected that the new system will be implemented in the energy, chemical, processing, construction, transport, telecommunications, medicine, industry, textile, and agricultural sectors.

Berdimuhammadov earlier set a task to introduce the electronic circulation of documents in all regions throughout the country. All of these measures should contribute to the operational resolution of management issues, improving control over material-technical enterprise parts, and increasing levels of public services.

In addition, the new system will efficiently track progress of seasonal work, ensure permanent control and operational decision-making at the departmental ministry levels, as well as administration and agricultural enterprises.

Local economists believe that introducing "e-government" will enhance the efficiency of enterprise management, give opportunities for operational control at all stages of administrative business processes, reduce document passage cycles, length of time to execute basic functions, and necessary operative information searches for administrative decision-making.

The Turkmen government discusses a cooperation project in reforming and strengthening the mechanisms of state governance, including macroeconomic regulation, and "e-government" with the UN.

This issue was discussed during the advisor of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the UN Secretariat Alexey Tikhomirov’s visit to Ashgabat.

.trend.az

Afghanistan plans national electronic ID cards

War-torn Afghanistan lacks basic national infrastructure, yet on Sunday the government unveiled plans for a $100 million electronic identification system with cards to be issued to all Afghans within five years.

A chip in the wallet-size identification cards will hold a drivers’ license, vehicle registration, signature and voting registration and would aid fairer, more transparent and efficient future elections, the Ministry of Communications said.

After three decades of conflict, Afghanistan is struggling to rebuild its economy and crumbling infrastructure such as roads, electricity and water access.

A September parliamentary election was tainted by widespread allegations of fraud, including reports of fake voter identification cards and repeat voting.

“We consider this a very important initiative for the development of Afghanistan,” Minister for Communication and Information Technology Amirzai Sangeen told a news conference at which a $101.5 million contract for the project was signed with Afghan company Grand Technology Resources.

“In our country the need for having proper identification is a very urgent matter,” he said. “Giving ID cards to everyone is a process … probably it is a three to five year process.”

The Ministry of Finance will fund the project from its development budget, as the government believes the system will help improve the country’s security.

Distributing ID cards in insurgent strongholds in the south and east of the country could prove difficult, however, as insurgents often intimidate or target Afghans seen to be cooperating with the government or foreign troops.

khaama.com

Pakistan begins verifying 81 mn voters

Pakistan has begun a mammoth task to verify the electoral rolls of 81 million voters.

epakistannews.com

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will carry out the verification of 81 million computerised electoral rolls based on the database of the National Database and Registration Authority, reported the Daily Times.

Those who don’t have their Computerised National Identity Cards (CNICs) would now get it.

The computerised card is mandatory for the registration of voters to ensure transparent electoral rolls.

Around 36 million new voters are likely to be registered as a result of the campaign which will continue till Sep 30.

This exercise is expected to take the total number of voters to around 83 million, the media report said.

For the door-to-door campaign, Pakistan has been divided into 145,000 census blocks, with each block containing 200 to 250 houses.

.thaindian.com

'Iran to hold cyber security maneuver'

Head of Iran's Passive Defense Organization says the Islamic Republic plans to hold a massive cyber maneuver to increase readiness against possible cyber attacks on the country.

Head of Iran's Passive Defense Organization
Brigadier General Gholam-Reza Jalali

Brigadier General Gholam-Reza Jalali told IRNA on Sunday that the drill is meant to assess the readiness of Iranian organizations and departments to prevent future cyber intrusions.

The remarks come amid reports that the Israeli military is planning a major cyber war against Iran by setting up a military cyber command.

The new cyber command, which has been described as central to the “defense capability” of the Israeli regime, will directly report to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Israeli command center, supported by the military, has reportedly conducted a series of "soft" espionage missions, including hacking into Iran's version of Facebook and other social networking sites.

A source with close knowledge of Israel's cyber war preparations said that Tel Aviv has two principal cyber targets, namely stopping Tehran's nuclear program and its civil infrastructure.

Iran's Minister of Communications and Information Technology Reza Taqipour said on August 10 that the Islamic Republic has taken appropriate countermeasures, including the establishment of a cyber command, to control and foil cyber attacks targeting the Islamic Republic.

presstv.ir

Korea to tackle online ID number leaks

asiancorrespondent.com

The Korean government will abolish a system that requires citizens to use their real names and resident registration numbers when posting messages on commenting online.

The move is part of the security overhauls currently being planned by Ministry of Public Administration & Security (MOPAS).

Last month, personal information of about 35 million users of the country’s popular internet and social media sites Nate and Cyworld was stolen during a hacking incident. The information included user IDs, passwords, names, resident registration numbers, mobile phone numbers and email address.

In addition, Korea Communications Commission (KCC) and the Korea Internet and Security Agency (KISA) acknowledged that 14,260 resident registration numbers were accessible on the internet last year.

In the data KCC and KISA submitted to the lawmakers, the leaked information included 6869 extracted by Chinese hackers.

The total number of known leaked resident registration numbers has been fast increasing every year – from 1503 in 2008 to 7033 in 2009. It was revealed that 7543 were leaked so far this year. An intelligence agency said leaked ID numbers from Chinese web sites had been used to post pro-North Korean messages online.

The real-name system, introduced in 2007, makes it compulsory for people who post on web sites with more than 100,000 visitors per day to use their real names and resident registration numbers.

The system has also benefited the government as it ensures the complaints and feedback it receives online are genuine. Dr Sung Jung-hee, former Assistant Mayor and CIO of Seoul, told FutureGov in 2008 that the system benefited the two online forums ran by the Metropolitan government, making both a trustworthy place for people to communicate with the government.

futuregov.asia

India's post offices to get e-connected

Minister for Communications and
Information Technology: Kapil Sibal

An ambitious modernisation programme for India’s Department of Posts is underway. As part of the India Post Technology Project, the Central government will provide internet connectivity to all post offices in the country by the year 2012-13. The focus is on extending the reach of Information and Communication Technology to post offices in rural areas.

“All the Departmental Post Offices (DPO) and Branch Post Offices (BPO) in the country would be provided with network connectivity by 2012-13 under the India Post Technology Project 2012,” Minister for Communications and Information Technology Kapil Sibal said. Sibal added that 22,360 DPOs in the country have been provided computers, while 1308 DPOs have been provided with wide area network (WAN) connections and 10,530 DPOs have been provided with broadband facilities. Funds to the tune of Rs.1877.2 crore is to be spent on the upgradation project. Rural post offices will be provided with ICT devices with applications for conducting different services. Provision has been made for training, change management, capacity building of the employees of the department along with project management activities for smooth and timely implementation of the project.

futuregov

Canada proposes for e-voting test

Chief Electoral Officer of Canada,
Marc Mayrand,

The Chief Electoral Officer of Canada, Marc Mayrand, said he will be seeking approval to test internet voting in a federal by-election held after 2013. He regarded internet voting as a complementary and convenient way to cast a ballot.

In the May elections report, released Wednesday, Mayrand writes about his plan to test e-voting and encourages parliamentarians to update the Elections Act.

The report suggested the Elections Canada Act should be revised to incorporate the impact modern communication tools such as Facebook and Twitter have on the election.

“The growing use of social media puts in question not only the practical enforceability of the rule, but also its very intelligibility and usefulness in a world where the distinction between private communication and public transmission is quickly eroding,” the report said.

Mayrand said Canadians live in a world replete with e-services and increasingly expect a range of options that provide them with more flexibility and accommodate their busy schedules.

About 62 per cent of Canadians voted in the last federal election.

According to the report three factors stop electors from voting—apathy, inconvenience and administrative barriers.

The report likewise suggests government to also look at online nominations, including electronic signatures, mobile advance polls for rural and remote areas, and making poll staffing and tasks more flexible.

Elections Canada is the independent, non-partisan agency responsible for conducting federal elections and referendums.

futuregov.asia

World Bank Continues to Help Improve the Land Administration Systems

Minister of Finance, H.E. Martina Dalić and the World Bank’s Country Manager for Croatia, Mr. Hongjoo J. Hahm signed yesterday a Loan Agreement in the amount of EURO 16.5 million (USD$23.8 million equivalent) for the Integrated Land Administration System Project to the Republic of Croatia aimed at further strengthening the land administration system.

The Integrated Land Administration System Project (ILAS) is a follow on project to the successful Real Property Registration and Cadastre project which helped the Ministry of Justice, the State Geodetic Administration and Land Registry Offices to successfully complete the first phase of the reform of the land registry and cadastre. It simplified procedures, improved efficiency of services, reduced backlogs, increased transparency and access to information and developed joint procedures and a common land database under the Joint Information System (JIS). All of these reforms have been important in improving tenure security and strengthening the land administration system which are both crucial for speeding up the reform of the judiciary and public administration, the fight against corruption and doing business.

The second phase of reforms supported through the ILAS will further strengthen the land administration system, including cadastre and registration, through improved services. Easier access to digital information will further lower the costs of doing business and strengthen private sector-led growth. It will also complete the national roll-out of the Joint Information System which will provide complete data including land registry and cadastre information in one database, making this information available to citizens and the public and private sectors. The Project will also help Croatia adopt the EU INSPIRE directive, a requirement for all member states. INSPIRE calls for effective sharing of spatial data locally and across borders to the benefit of all EU public authorities and governments. To achieve this, the Project will help with the establishment of a National Spatial Data Infrastructure, allowing the implementation of e-government initiatives and effective environmental monitoring.

“By the end of the Project in 2015, we expect that the public and the business community will receive faster services and access to information through fully integrated digital data, government institutions will be able to share and view government spatial data more easily, allowing better planning and spatial development, environmental monitoring and natural resource management,” said Hongjoo J. Hahm, World Bank Country Manager for Croatia. “The increased transparency and access to digital cadastre and registry information is necessary for e-government and other modern services that Croatian citizens will expect as the country enters the European Union.”

The Loan of EUR 16.5 million which was approved by the World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors on August 4, 2011, has a maturity of 20 years and a grace period of 4 years included.

Since joining the World Bank in 1993, Croatia has benefited from financial and technical assistance, policy advice, and analytical services. To date, the World Bank has supported 48 operations in an amount above US$ 3 billion, and approved 52 grants with a total value of US$70 million.


worldbank.hr