This report looks at new thinking and practice in OECD countries in using information and communications technologies to enhance government services.

The digital transformation of public sectors, economies and societies is generating challenges as well as opportunities for governments. Robust public governance is needed to respond to these challenges, reap the full benefits of digital and data-driven government, and encourage a holistic, systemic transformation.

Twenty-first century governments must keep pace with the expectations of their citizens and deliver on the promise of the digital age. Data-driven approaches are particularly effective for meeting those expectations and rethinking the way governments and citizens interact. This report highlights the important role data can play in creating conditions that improve public services, increase the effectiveness of public spending and inform ethical and privacy considerations. It presents a data-driven public sector framework that can help countries or organisations assess the elements needed for using data to make better-informed decisions across public sectors.

This report aims to foster a better understanding on how to leverage the economic and social impacts of the implementation of the Internet into mobile devices to enable ubiquitous governments, sustain public sector innovation and transform public service delivery.

The 2021 edition includes input indicators on public finance and employment; process indicators include data on institutions, budgeting practices, human resources management, regulatory governance, public procurement, governance of infrastructure, public sector integrity, open government and digital government. Outcome indicators cover core government results (e.g. trust, political efficacy, inequality reduction) and indicators on access, responsiveness, quality and satisfaction for the education, health and justice sectors.

This Digital Government Review highlights the efforts taking place in Argentina to digitalise and improve data governance in its public sector and build the foundations for a digital government. The review explores Argentina's institutional, legal and policy frameworks and their strategic role in the digital transformation of the public sector. The report also discusses how to reinforce the capacity of the public sector to "go digital" and better respond to citizens' needs. It explores how ICT procurement, management, and commissioning can help improve public sector accountability and efficiency, as well as support greater policy coherence and compliance with digital government standards. The review ends with a discussion on the state of data governance in the public sector, including data leadership and stewardship, rules and platforms for data production, sharing and interoperability, data protection, data federation, and open government data initiatives.

E-Government is more about government than about “e”. The rise of the information society has led to major changes in citizen expectations and organisational structures, cultures and working processes. Governments are following suit and adopting information society tools and working practices to remain responsive to citizen needs. The impact of e-government at the broadest level is simply better government by enabling better policy outcomes, higher quality services, greater engagement with citizens and by improving other key outputs. Governments and public administrations will, and should, continue to be judged against these established criteria for success. Governments are responding to new technologies, and are particularly attentive to time. Unlike other aspects of government, technologies evolve very quickly and equipment rapidly becomes out of date. The decisions taken today commit administrations to a future that is changing, and not fully understood. Errors are costly financially, but are especially worrisome in terms of losing the trust of citizens and businesses. The transition to e-government is an opportunity for countries to show their capacity to adapt and overcome barriers. Delays in implementing e-government reforms will penalise economic development in this competitive, rapidly changing world. E-government initiatives refocus attention on a number of issues: how to collaborate more effectively across agencies to address complex, shared problems; how to enhance customer focus; and how to build relationships with private sector partners. Public administrations must address these issues if they are to remain responsive. As long as these steps have not been successfully undertaken and the necessary tools put in place, the full potential of e-government will not be realised.