Integration of service delivery in the Arab Region - role of standards and interoperability
Published 27-08-2018
United Nations, Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) published the study 'Integration of service delivery in the Arab Region' in 2017. This study is based on a report prepared by Mr. Jeremy Millard, Director, Third Millennium Governance, Denmark and the UK; Ms. Louise Thomasen, Director, coThomasen, Denmark; and Mr. Farouk Missi, Lecturer, Brunel University, London, UK in 2014.
Download the report from UN ESWAS website: 
Integration of Service Delivery in the Arab region: role of standards and interoperability
Abstract
E-government services in all countries of the world are increasingly taking a citizen-centric approach focusing on citizens’ needs enabled largely by Information and Communication Technology (ICT). To achieve this, collaboration, communication, interoperability and the adoption of common standards are crucial for the provision of integrated services across all channels, including traditional face-to-face contact, which are needed to maximize the benefits of citizens and other users. In this context, the main objective of this study is to provide recommendations for a strategic framework and guidelines for e-government service integration in the Arab region, with a particular focus on the role of standards and interoperability, in order to deliver both improved services for users and greater efficiencies within the government administration.
To meet this objective, the methodology adopted to meet this objective consists, first, of desk research to identify global good practices in e-government, and e-service integration in particular, by analysing selected examples from around the world in order to derive the main lessons and trends. Second, the latest surveys and studies are examined to provide an overview of e-government development and services in the Arab region. This is supplemented by detailed cases studies from eight Arab countries and eleven questionnaire responses, representing the current status of e-government service integration across the region. Third, this status is placed in the context of the identified global trends and good practice to examine the important issues relevant to e-government service integration in the Arab region and the challenges it faces. Finally, these issues provide the basis for recommendations for a strategic framework and guidelines for egovernment service integration in the Arab region in order to assist Arab countries in progressing towards the most advanced global levels of development.
