GOVERNANCE E Q U I TA B L E G R O W T H , F I N A N C E & I N S T I T U T I O N S N OT E S GovTech Maturity Index 2022 Update Regional Brief: East and Southern Africa March 2023 © 2023 International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 1818 H Street NW Washington DC 20433 Telephone: 202-473-1000 Internet: www.worldbank.org This work is a product of the staff of The World Bank with external contributions. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this work do not necessarily reflect the views of The World Bank, its Board of Executive Directors, or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or currency of the data included in this work and does not assume responsibility for any errors, omissions, or discrepancies in the information, or liability with respect to the use of or failure to use the information, methods, processes, or conclusions set forth. The boundaries, colors, denominations, and other information shown on any map in this work do not imply any judgment on the part of The World Bank concerning the legal status of any territory or the endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries. Nothing herein shall constitute or be construed or considered to be a limitation upon or waiver of the privileges and immunities of The World Bank, all of which are specifically reserved. Rights and Permissions The material in this work is subject to copyright. Because The World Bank encourages dissemination of its knowledge, this work may be reproduced, in whole or in part, for noncommercial purposes as long as full attribution to this work is given. Attribution: Please cite this brief as follows: World Bank. 2023. “GovTech Maturity Index, 2022 Update — Regional Brief: East and Southern Africa.” Equitable Growth, Finance & Institutions Notes. Washington, DC: World Bank. Any queries on rights and licenses, including subsidiary rights, should be addressed to World Bank Publications, The World Bank Group, 1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA; fax: 202-522- 2625; e-mail: pubrights@worldbank.org. >>> Contents Acknowledgements iii GovTech Maturity Index Regional Briefs 1 Regional Overview 3 Country-Level Overview 6 GovTech Focus Areas 7 Core Government Systems 7 Public Service Delivery 10 Digital Citizen Engagement 12 GovTech Enablers 13 Digital Governance/GovTech Projects 15 Future Directions 18 Resources 20 >>> Acknowledgements This brief was prepared by the GovTech Maturity Index (GTMI) team led by Cem Dener (Task Team Leader, Lead Governance Specialist) and composed of Kimberly Johns (Co-Task Team Leader, Senior Public Sector Specialist), Hubert Nii-Aponsah (Consultant), Charles Victor Blanco (Senior Public Sector Specialist), Hunt La Cascia (Senior Procurement Specialist), Çağla Giray (Consultant), Till Hartmann (Junior Professional Officer), Youngseok Kim (Senior Governance Specialist), Asami Okahashi (Governance Specialist), Freida Siregar (E.T. Consultant), and João Ricardo Vasconcelos (Senior Governance Specialist). Overall guidance for the 2022 GTMI regional briefs was provided by Roby Senderowitsch (Practice Manager), and Arturo Herrera Gutiérrez (Global Director). The team benefited from the comments and contributions of the World Bank Governance and Digital Development Global Practice regional units, as well as the Identification for Development (ID4D) and the Digitizing Government to Person Payments (G2Px) initiatives (EAEG1, EAEG2, EAERU, IDD03, and IDD04). The team is also thankful to Liudmila Uvarova and Sandra Valdivia Teixeira for their support on dissemination activities. Cyrel Crisologo San Gabriel provided editorial services, and Maria Lopez provided graphic design services. This report was made possible by the World Bank’s GovTech Initiative and the GovTech Global Partnership trust fund. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< iii 1. >>> GovTech Maturity Index Regional Briefs GovTech is a whole-of-government approach to public sector modernization that promotes a simple, efficient, and transparent government with the citizen at the center of reforms.1 The GovTech Maturity Index (GTMI) measures the key aspects of four GovTech focus areas in 198 economies—supporting core government systems, enhancing service delivery, mainstreaming citizen engagement, and fostering enablers—and assists government officials, World Bank teams, and practitioners in the design of new projects. Several indexes are available in the public domain for measuring the specific aspects of digital government, including the United Nations (UN) eGovernment Development Index (EGDI) and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Digital Government Index. Although these indexes are useful for monitoring the progress of digital government initiatives and good practices in general, none of them fully capture the critical dimensions of digital transformation in the public sector. The GTMI is a comprehensive composite index that comprises 48 key indicators—40 of them are updated or expanded GovTech indicators and eight are highly relevant external indicators, including the UN EGDI. The key indicators measure the relatively less-known aspects of GovTech focus areas across 198 economies. The GTMI is the simple average of the normalized scores of four components: the Core Government Systems Index (CGSI), based on 17 indicators; the Public Service Delivery Index (PSDI), based on nine composite indicators; the Digital Citizen Engagement Index (DCEI), based on six indicators; and the GovTech Enablers Index (GTEI), based on 16 indicators.2 The similarities and differences of the GTMI findings compared with other global indexes are discussed in the GTMI 2020 and 2022 Update reports, which present the GTMI methodology in detail. The GTMI is neither intended to create a ranking, nor capture the extent of GovTech implementation, or assess a country’s readiness for GovTech. Rather, it provides a snapshot of the GovTech maturity and helps in identifying gaps that represent opportunities for improvement. Countries are grouped into four categories, A to D.3 Group A comprises the GovTech leaders demonstrating substantial progress and good practices in all four focus areas. Group B economies have significant GovTech investments and good practices in most of the focus areas. Group C economies have ongoing activities to improve some of the GovTech focus areas. Group D includes economies with minimal focus on GovTech initiatives. 1. The World Bank launched the GovTech Global Partnership (GTGP) Initiative in 2019 to support client countries in their efforts to harness the opportunities of digitalization for public sector modernization. The GovTech approach represents the current frontier of digital government transformation. Please visit the GovTech website for details. 2. The meaning of enablers in this context may be different from the use of enablers and foundations in other World Bank reports or tools, including World Development Reports and the Digital Government Readiness Assessment, and elsewhere within the GovTech context. The GovTech Enablers Index measures the presence of several crosscutting enablers relevant to advancing GovTech; however, it does not quantify their effectiveness or performance. 3. All economies were grouped into four categories, A to D, based on the normalized GTMI scores reflecting the key aspects of four focus areas (A = Very high >=0.75 and <=1; B = High >=0.50 and <0.75; C = Medium >=0.25 and <0.50; D = Low <0.25). EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 1 The GTMI is not comparable to the UN EGDI, since it measures different aspects using different indicators based on the information and evidence provided by government officials or available in government websites. Although similarities exist in about 80 percent of the economies, the GTMI may present a different view than the UN EGDI in some countries (see Appendix C of the GTMI reports for further explanation). Hence, ranking or comparison of countries based on their GTMI component scores may lead to misleading conclusions. Instead, the change in the GTMI group of an economy can be used as an indicator of the progress to avoid any misperception. The GTMI is intended to present the state of play in digital government. When using the GTMI, readers are encouraged to examine the initial pointers presented in the GovTech Dataset and collect further evidence to understand the level of implementation, effectiveness, and reception of GovTech solutions and their enablers in each economy. For a comprehensive diagnostic, the updated Digital Government Readiness Assessment (DGRA) toolkit developed by the Digital Development Global Practice can be used to validate degrees of implementation, expand on all areas, and provide country-specific recommendations. The 2020 edition of the GTMI was based on remote data collection (mainly due to the pandemic). The 2022 GTMI update is essentially based on the World Bank’s GovTech Dataset (October 2022 version), which is publicly available in the World Bank Data Catalog. The dataset captures the online survey responses of formally designated public officials to 48 key indicators and 303 sub-indicators (153 of which are used in the GTMI calculations and the remaining 150 are informative). Additional evidence was gathered in the form of functional URLs and public documents to support the reported progress. The GTMI findings presented in this brief are based on the GovTech dataset to minimize subjectivity biases, which may not be consistent with the available evidence. The dataset will be updated every two years to reflect progress in the four GovTech focus areas. The new GTMI Data Dashboard was launched in November 2022 (together with the 2022 GovTech Dataset) to enable users visualize and explore the data collected on 48 key indicators and related sub-indicators. The GovTech Projects Database (October 2022 version) presents the details of more than 1,440 investments funded by the World Bank in 147 countries since 1995. The projects included in the database cover a broad spectrum of solutions funded by all related global practices of the World Bank.4 As a part of the dissemination activities, a series of regional GTMI briefs were prepared in consultation with the World Bank regional units and country teams to complement the 2022 GTMI Update report, which was released in December 2022. The regional briefs will cover the East and South Africa (AFE), the West and Central Africa (AFW), the East Asia and Pacific (EAP), the Europe and Central Asia (ECA), the Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), the Middle East and North Africa (MNA), and the South Asia (SAR) regions of the World Bank. Each regional brief presents an overview of the progress within the last two years, together with good practices, gaps, and opportunities identified in public sector digital transformation based on the 2022 GTMI findings, to inform policy decisions and the design of new projects. So far, the GTMI findings have been used in the design of more than 15 new investment lending projects since 2021. Some of the World Bank projects supporting various reforms are also included to complement the presentation of country cases. Please reach out to the GTMI team (gtmi@worldbank.org) for your questions, clarifications, and suggestions on the GTMI update report, datasets, dashboard, or regional briefs. 4. In addition to the projects led by the Governance Global Practice, the database also includes a core part of Digital Development Global Practice’s business lines of data infrastructure and digital public infrastructure and the cross-global-practice initiatives of Identification for Development (ID4D) and Digitizing Government to Person Payments (G2Px), together with the activities of other global practices. The new projects initiated after the October 2022 update of the database may not be captured in this brief. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 2 2. >>> GovTech Maturity Index Regional Brief East and Southern Africa Regional Overview According to the GovTech Maturity Index (GTMI) 2022 update for the East and Southern Africa (AFE) region, eight countries are in group A or B, and the remaining 18 countries are in group C or D, exhibiting medium to low focus on GovTech initiatives in general (Figure 1). GovTech initiatives were primarily associated with enhancing the delivery of public services and strengthening core government systems. >>> Figure 1: 2022 GTMI Regional Outlook, East and Southern Africa São Tomé & Principe Democratic Sudan South Sudan Republic of Congo Rwanda Burundi Eritrea Ethiopia Uganda Kenya Tanzania Somalia Comoros Seychelles A GovTech Leaders B Significant Focus C Some Focus D Minimal Focus Total GTMI # of Economies 3 5 14 4 26 Angola Malawi Average GTMI Scores Zambia Mozambique GTMI 0.440 Zimbabwe Madagascar Namibia CGSI 0.483 Botswana Mauritius PSDI 0.515 Eswatini DCEI 0.335 Lesotho GTEI 0.427 South Africa 0.0 0.5 1.0 Source: World Bank data (26 economies). Please refer to the 2022 GTMI Update report for details. Note: The regional average GTMI scores in each GovTech focus area and the number of economies in each GTMI group are presented together with the map. GTMI = GovTech Maturity Index, CGSI = Core Government Systems Index, PSDI = Public Service Delivery Index, DCEI = Digital Citizen Engagement Index, GTEI = GovTech Enablers Index. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 3 However, all four focus areas lag behind the technology frontier and can be improved through investments in platforms that encourage citizen engagement, as well as strategies, laws, and programs that create an enabling environment for digital transformation to thrive. Additional investments in government systems and public services are also required. According to the 2022 Digital Government/GovTech projects database, 139 investment projects have been completed in the 26 AFE countries by World Bank global practices since 1995. There are 53 active and 13 pipeline projects supporting various GovTech solutions as of December 2022. Total commitments are about $19.2 billion, $6.1 billion of which is on DG/GovTech solutions (Table 2). Existing diagnostic reports (Digital Economy Initiative for Africa and Digital Government Readiness Assessment), the 2022 GTMI update, global datasets, and regional briefs can be used to monitor progress in the adoption of digital technologies and to identify priority engagements while designing new activities to address country-specific challenges in upcoming years. >>> Figure 2: Average GTMI Scores, by GTMI Group, AFE Despite an increase in the GTMI regional average from 0.359 1.00 1.00 0.861 in 2020 to 0.440 in 2022, the difference in the average GTMI 2020 2022 0.772 scores of 26 countries reflects the widening gap in digital 0.75 0.75 0.574 0.624 divide between group A and D countries (Figure 2). The 0.50 0.50 0.440 AFE regional average (0.440) is higher than the overall Sub- 0.351 0.359 0.365 Saharan Africa average (0.394) but significantly below the 0.25 0.162 0.25 0.155 global average (0.552). 0.00 0.00 A B C D A B C D # Econ: 1 5 13 7 # Econ: 3 5 14 4 >>> Figure 3: Average GTMI Scores, by Income Level, AFE There were notable positive changes in the GTMI scores by 1.00 1.00 income levels of the AFE countries within the last two years 2020 2022 (Figure 3). The eight countries in groups A and B are from 0.75 0.75 0.553 middle- and lower-income countries. Thus, higher income 0.495 0.50 0.484 0.50 0.452 0.471 0.440 level is not necessarily translating into advancement in digital 0.375 0.359 0.385 transformation. While financial investments play an important 0.294 0.25 0.25 role, other non-pecuniary aspects such as the political will of governments also matter. 0.00 0.00 H UM LM L H UM LM L # Econ: 2 3 9 12 # Econ: 1 4 8 13 Source: World Bank data (26 economies). Note: AFE = East and Southern Africa, GTMI = GovTech Maturity Index, H = high-income economies, UM = upper-middle-income economies, LM = lower-middle-income economies, L = low-income economies. The AFE region has the second-lowest number of economies in groups A and B (8 out of 26, or 31 percent) globally (Figure 4). This pattern is similar to the West and Central Africa region (6 out of 22, or 27 percent) but significantly lower than other regions such as Europe and Central Asia (26 out of 30, or 87 percent), and Latin America and the Caribbean (18 out of 32, or 56 percent). Since most economies (18 out of 26, or 69 percent) display medium to low focus on public sector digital transformation, there are abundant opportunities for further progress in the GovTech agenda of the region. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 4 >>> Figure 4: GovTech Maturity in the World Bank Regions, by GTMI Group, 2022 AFE 4 14 5 3 AFW 11 5 5 1 EAP 7 7 5 6 ECA 1 3 10 16 LAC 3 11 7 11 MNA 3 4 5 8 SAR 3 3 2 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 Economies D C B A Source: World Bank data (163 economies). Note: AFE = East and Southern Africa, AFW = West and Central Africa, EAP = East Asia and Pacific, ECA = Europe and Central Asia, LAC = Latin America and the Caribbean, MNA = Middle East and North Africa, SAR = South Asia. As of December 2022, GovTech initiatives in AFE countries had focused more on delivery of public services and modernization of core government systems than on improvement of citizen engagement and advancement of the GovTech ecosystem (Figure 5). Broadly, this pattern is like all other regions except AFW, where the regional focus was on core government systems. Critically, however, the lower averages in all focus areas compared with other regions such as ECA, MNA, and SAR reiterate the need for countries in the region to catch up and converge toward the technology frontier. >>> Figure 5: Average GTMI Scores by Region, 2022 1.00 0.75 0.50 0.25 0.00 AFE AFW EAP ECA LAC MNA SAR Avg CGSI Avg PSDI Avg DCEI Avg GTEI Source: World Bank data (covering 163 economies in all regions). Note: AFE = East and Southern Africa, AFW = West and Central Africa, EAP = East Asia and Pacific, ECA = Europe and Central Asia, LAC = Latin America and the Caribbean, MNA = Middle East and North Africa, SAR = South Asia, CGSI = Core Government Systems Index, PSDI = Public Service Delivery Index, DCEI = Digital Citizen Engagement Index, GTEI = GovTech Enablers Index. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 5 3. >>> Country-Level Overview Most of the countries in the region (19 out of 26, or 73 percent) participated in the 2022 Central Government GTMI online survey and provided useful information about their digital transformation initiatives. For seven non-participating countries, the GTMI team collected relevant data remotely from the government websites (except new performance-related sub-indicators). Compared with the 2020 GTMI data, eight economies (Comoros, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Mauritius, Somalia, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia) advanced to a higher GTMI group and one country moved one level down (South Africa) (Table 1). The remaining 17 countries maintained their positions. The reduction in the total number of countries in groups C and D (from 20 to 18) and advances in other groups indicate that there was some progress in several focus areas in the last two years, despite the COVID-19 pandemic challenges. >>> Table 1: Overview of GTMI Groups, AFE, 2022 Group A Mauritius, Tanzania, Uganda B C D GTMI Very High High Ethiopia¯, Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa*, Zambia Medium Mozambique¯*, Namibia, Seychelles, Somalia¯, Zimbabwe¯ Low Eritrea¯*, São Tomé and Principe*, South Sudan¯*, Sudan¯* Economies in group GovTech leaders Significant focus on GovTech Some focus on GovTech Angola, Botswana*, Burundi¯, Comoros¯, Democratic Republic of Congo¯, Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Minimal focus on GovTech Total Economies 3 5 14 4 26 %E 12% 19% 54% 15% Source: World Bank data (26 economies). Note: Blue represents a movement to a higher GTMI group and red indicates a drop from a higher GTMI group compared with the 2020 GTMI data. Black implies no change in the GTMI group. % E means percentage of the economies included in the relevant group. Economies highlighted with (*) did not participate in the 2022 Central Government GTMI online survey. Fragile and conflict-affected economies are shown with (¯). Most of the 10 economies impacted by fragile and conflict-affected situations (FCS) are in groups C and D, as expected, except Ethiopia, which moved up to group B. The distribution of these 10 countries differs in each focus area. Compared with non-FCS peers, their scores for Core Government Systems Index (CGSI), Public Service Delivery Index (PSDI), and GovTech Enablers Index (GTEI) were lower, an indicator of the connection between the lack of progress in the modernization and expansion of core government systems, public service delivery, and GovTech enablers, and the FCS environment. The spread of FCS economies in terms of Digital Citizen Engagement Index (DCEI) are more erratic, which may reflect the lower investments in citizen engagement among economies around the world. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 6 4. >>> GovTech Focus Areas The GTMI data collected encompasses 40 key indicators (35 existing, 5 new). They are presented below to reflect the state of four GovTech focus areas, together with selected good practices and possible improvements. Eight external indicators used in the calculation of the GTMI groups are not included in Figures 6 to 9 and their indicator numbers are not displayed. Please refer to the GTMI report for a detailed explanation of all 48 GTMI indicators. Core Government Systems Most countries already have core public financial management and other systems in place to support central government operations (financial management information system, tax, customs, human resources management information system, payroll, social insurance, e-procurement, debt management.) However, only five to seven economies (19 to 27 percent) have some of the elements needed to transition to shared government platforms (components such as government cloud, enterprise architecture, an interoperability framework, or an enterprise service bus) (Figure 6.1). There have been improvements in responses to 12 (out of the 14) existing CGSI indicators compared with the 2020 GTMI data. The most visible increases are on the indicators of government cloud, service bus, treasury single account (31 percent each), and enterprise architecture (35 percent) (Figure 6.2). EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 7 >>> >>> Figure 6.1: CGSI Indicator-Level Responses, AFE, 2022 Figure 6.2: Changes since 2020 Nat’l Strategy on Disruptive Tech I-17 4 7 15 I-17 4% 27% Open Source Software Policy I-15 1 4 21 I-15 0% 12% Public Investment Mgmt System I-14 5 2 19 I-14 4% 19% Debt Management System I-13 25 1 I-13 0% 4% e-Procurement Portal I-12 20 6 I-12 4% 0% Social Insurance/Pension System I-11 24 11 I-11 N 0% 0% Payroll System I-10 23 1 2 I-10 0% 12% Human Resources MIS I-9 20 2 4 I-9 8% 15% Customs Mgmt Information System I-8 23 1 2 I-8 4% 4% Tax Mgmt Information System I-7 20 1 5 I-7 0% 8% Treasury Single Account I-6 14 8 4 I-6 4% 31% Financial Mgmt Information System I-5 25 1 0% I-5 0% Government Service Bus I-4 7 5 14 15% I-4 31% Gov Interoperability Framework I-3 6 8 12 0% I-3 N 4% Gov Enterprise Architecture I-2 5 5 16 8% I-2 35% Government Cloud I-1 6 5 15 4% I-1 31% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% Yes Planned / In progress No % Decrease % Increase Source: World Bank data (26 economies). Note: AFE = East and Southern Africa, CGSI = Core Government Systems Index, MIS = management information system, N = new indicator. Despite an overall positive trend, progress is visible in only a small group of countries. Two new key indicators (denoted by N) did not reveal any significant progress regarding the use of social insurance/pension systems and interoperability frameworks. New initiatives could focus more on expanding the effective use and interoperability of existing systems, shared digital infrastructure (e.g., government cloud, service bus), and data governance. New initiatives could also promote the strategic use of innovative technologies and open-source solutions to reduce the cost of investments and create more sustainable platforms supporting the whole-of-government approach, service delivery improvements, and digital citizen engagement. Selected good practices and opportunities for improving CGSI are presented below: ● Mauritius is a leading economy in terms of core government systems, with a CGSI score of 0.89, far higher than regional and global averages. It is the only economy that has an Open Source Software (OSS) policy, included in a national action plan prepared by the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology with the support of the European Union. The OSS policy was approved in 2014, with the Ministry-level chief information officer (CIO) mandated to make decisions on adoption and procurement of an OSS solution. As of October 2022, the OSS policy, which is advisory in nature, is partially adopted in several sectors. E-Government Procurement (e-GP) was introduced in 2015. The system has been successfully used since then and on a mandatory basis since 2021. ● Tanzania is another leader in core government systems, with a CGSI score of 0.88. The Ministry of Finance and Planning (MoFP) launched the fifth Public Finance Management Reform Program (PFMRP Phase VI, 2022–2026) in September 2022. The following key achievements were reported in this program: (1) simplified non-tax revenue collection and increase in revenues from 951.0 billion shillings in 2017–2018 to 4,366.7 billion shillings in 2021–2022 after launching the Government electronic Payment Gateway (GePG) and the Local Government Revenue Collection Information System (LGRCIS); (2) improved efficiency of cash management and significantly reduced transaction costs and banking fees after the adoption of a Treasury Single Account (TSA) and closure of 33,000 government commercial bank accounts; and (3) reduced operational costs and improved efficiency in expenditure management and reporting after replacing the legacy systems with custom-developed Budget and Expenditure Management/Bajeti na Matumizi (BAMA) and Government Payments/Mfumo EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 8 wa Ulipaji Serikalini (MUSE) systems as shared platforms for all central and local government entities. It is important to monitor the effectiveness of these systems. Priority areas of the new reform program include the enhancement of digital skills in the public sector; use of virtual applications for remote access to core systems; more focus on open source and in-house system development; and integration of enhanced public procurement, asset management, and public investment management systems. Regional Communications Infrastructure Program – Phase 3 (P111432). The Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) developed the Tanzanian National e-Procurement System (TANePS) as a web-based, collaborative system in compliance with the requirement of public procurement laws to facilitate public procurement processes in Tanzania under World Bank financial support. It provides a unified electronic platform for procurement of all categories, complexity, or value as provisioned in the public procurement legislation in the country. The TANePS supports procurement of goods, works, consultancy, non-consultancy, and disposal of public assets by tender. The system supports various public procurement procedures, including user registration, tender notification, tender preparation and submission, online tender evaluation, contract awarding, creation and management of catalogue, creation and management of framework agreements, and auctions and payments. The system procedures are implemented in the TANePS in accordance with the PPRA and e-GP regulations. TANePS has been used since 2018, and on a mandatory basis across all procuring entities in the country since December 2020. ● Uganda is a leader in core government systems with a CGSI score of 0.89. Uganda’s National Government Cloud platform was launched in 2019 with financing from Regional Communications Infrastructure Project (P130871) and is currently used as the government’s single shared cloud platform. This could be viewed as a public cloud or Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) platform where computing resources are managed by the National Information Technology Authority of Uganda (NITA-U) and shared between multiple government entities. Uganda reports on the usage of cloud, security, and financial savings; however, it does not publish the findings or main results of its reports. The e-GP supplier portal was launched in 2022. It is based on a system developed in Uganda to complement the open-data-compliant Government Online Procurement Portal, wherein it is mandatory for all ministries, departments, and agencies to publish government procurement contracts. This platform complements the integrated financial management information system (IFMIS), which was relaunched in October 2022, and the human resources management information system (HRMIS) under roll-out in 2023. The HRMIS will replace the integrated personnel and payroll system (IPPS) earlier set up under World-Bank-financed Uganda Public Service Performance Enhancement Program (P050440). Several new platforms have also been launched to facilitate citizen engagement in accountability for public resources such as the Office of the Auditor General’s Citizen Feedback Platform and the Budget website. Regional Communications Infrastructure Program – Phase 5 (P130871) is a recently completed World Bank project in Uganda that contributed to the development of broadband connectivity and improved government efficiency and transparency through e-government applications. The national data sharing and integration platform, known as UgHub, is currently providing data-sharing capability to more than 70 government entities to support increased efficiency of government service delivery. As of July 2022, the national data center is providing data hosting services for almost 200 critical e-government applications run by 95 government agencies and departments. Both are critical foundational components of the e-services stack that allows the government to develop transactional services that can exchange and utilize data across ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs). From a baseline take-up rate of zero, by the end of the project, half of MDAs and local governments were using a shared public service delivery platform (ecitizen.go.ug), ranging from an SMS gateway to an e-payment portal. The project also supported implementation of 24 e-services, including an anticorruption tool for the Office of the President to combat corruption, a cash relief system for teachers affected during the COVID-19 pandemic, and enhancement of the e-Government Procurement platform. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 9 ● Zambia has the highest CGSI score (0.65) among group B countries. The Smart Zambia Institute (SZI) is leading the digital transformation initiatives with a focus on whole-of-government approach. The e-Government Interoperability Standard was approved in 2019. The Zambia Government Service Bus (GSB/ZamConnect, based on an open-source X-Road platform) was launched in June 2020 and more than 40 services have been integrated so far. The Ministry of Finance is already using the GSB to exchange data with the Zambia Revenue Authority and the Zambia Immigration System using application programming interfaces (APIs). The INFRATEL is managing three new data centers as the foundations for a government private cloud for colocation, storage, and platform services. E-GP was introduced in July 2016. However, the use of the system has been subject to limitations due to issues regarding Internet connectivity, availability of equipment from suppliers, and capacity. ● In Rwanda, the e-procurement system is integrated with different government electronic services, and now it can automatically access the databases from the Rwanda Development Board to authenticate the registration status of bidders, the Rwanda Revenue Authority to check the status of tax performance, and the Rwanda Social Security Board for compliance with fund contribution. The bids will also be secured within the e-procurement system, which is linked to the Rwanda Public Key Infrastructure and supported by the Cyber Security Unit. The World Bank assessed the e-procurement system in Rwanda and now it can be used for World-Bank-financed projects. Having World Bank projects use e-procurement provides the confidence that Rwanda needs to further its digital transformation in public procurement. Rwanda Public Sector Governance Program-For-Results (P149095). Rwanda’s e-procurement system was developed in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning and the Rwanda Public Procurement Authority (RPPA) under the Public Sector Governance Program-For-Results credit from the World Bank to automate the public procurement process; enable interactions between the government and the bidding community; infuse efficiency in the public procurement process; enhance transparency and standardization of electronic documents, supplier registration and authentication, and goods and services information; and streamline public procurement transactions. This system ensures electronic evaluation of bids, contract management, and payments. Public Service Delivery There are gaps and opportunities across all Public Service Delivery Index (PSDI) indicators in the AFE region. Economies in the region are evenly split in terms of achievement, with the strongest performance on an online tax service portal (with 77 percent adoption), followed by e-filing and e-payment services (58 and 62 percent, respectively). >>> >>> Figure 7.1: PSDI Indicator-Level Responses, AFE, 2022 Figure 7.2: Changes since 2020 Job Portal I-25 I-25 N 0% 11 1 14 0% 0% Social Ins/Pension Online Services I-24 12 2 12 I-24 N 0% 58% Customs Services/Single Window I-23 10 4 12 I-23 0% 0% e-Payment Services I-22 16 1 9 I-22 54% 15% e-Filing for Tax/Customs I-21 15 3 8 I-21 8% 19% Tax Online Service Portal I-20 20 2 4 I-20 12% 7 14 5 12% Online Public Service Portal I-19 I-19 27% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% Yes Planned / In progress No % Decrease % Increase Source: World Bank data (26 economies). Note: AFE = East and Southern Africa, N = new indicator, PSDI = Public Service Delivery Index. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 10 Compared with the 2020 GTMI data, there were substantial decreases in PSDI scores in the customs services/single window indicator (58 percent) as well as substantial increases in the e-payment services indicator (54 percent). This is mainly because of additional questions in the 2022 GTMI update that captured a more accurate state of performance. Responses to two new key indicators (social insurance/pension and job portals) revealed that the existing platforms were maintained without major improvements within the last two years (Figure 7.1 and 7.2). Strengthening public service delivery (digital and otherwise) in this region requires consideration of underlying factors and analog complements to digital delivery. This is because of the challenges posed by constraints around Internet connectivity, access, power outages, and lack of capacity. Some of the good practices related to online public service delivery platforms are presented below: ● Rwanda is a leading economy in terms of public service delivery with a PSDI score of 0.94, far higher than the global and regional averages. Rwanda is one of the economies in the region with an integrated customs online service portal. The portal supports registration, declaration, payments, and other transactions, and is available in three languages and through multiple channels for increased accessibility. ● Mauritius is another leader in public service delivery with a PSDI score of 0.92. Mauritius has an online, one-stop shop public service portal where citizens and residents can obtain information and conduct public sector transactions. The government involved citizens and businesses in the design of its e-services and constructed the portal to be accessible from multiple channels, including through a mobile application. Through this portal, residents can start a business and establish e-residency. That said, the body in charge does not publish reports of online service delivery performance or user experience. ● Kenya is another top performer in PSDI (0.90). The job portal includes public sector positions. Like Mauritius’s services portal, this job portal was designed around the user and allows for omnichannel access (each page on the website declares the public service commission’s commitment to “a citizen-centric public service”). On this platform, citizens can apply for jobs and internships, then check the status of their personal application and the status of the job itself. The Kenya GPE Primary Education Development Project (P146797) aims to improve early-grade mathematics competency and to strengthen management systems at school and national levels. One component is related to the Ministry of Education’s (MoE) Education Management Information System (EMIS). The project supported the migration of paper-based EMIS to the online National EMIS (NEMIS). As part of developing this, learners were registered with unique personal identifiers linked to their birth certificates. The percentage of primary schools submitting EMIS data increased from 60 percent in 2015 to 90 percent in 2021. The project also provided technical assistance for conducting national learning assessments by training 64 technical staff at the National Learning Centre (NAC), and for preparing an education sector analysis that contributed to the development of the 2018–2022 National Education Sector Strategy Plan. In addition to identifying learning gaps, the assessments informed policy development and curriculum modifications. The MoE has institutionalized a culture of assessment data utilization through a robust dissemination of data down to the school level. NEMIS data were published in annual educational statistical booklets from 2017 to 2021. The MoE’s use of the system data includes student placement, disbursement of capitation for primary and secondary school grants, and provision of medical coverage to secondary school students. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 11 Digital Citizen Engagement Besides AFW, the AFE region has the lowest DCEI scores compared with other regions. Uganda, Tanzania, and Mauritius are leading with a DCEI score of 0.917, 0.828, and 0.771, respectively. However, for the majority, there are major deficiencies in platforms that provide citizens the opportunity to participate effectively in issues affecting them (Figure 8.1). To be more specific, only six out of 26 countries (23 percent) reported having national platforms for citizen participation, and even fewer (four out of 26, or 15 percent) published citizen engagement statistics to help monitor and track progress. Furthermore, only half of the economies in the region provide citizens the chance to offer feedback on policy issues or public services, while less than half have open government portals comprising current government data and informative publications to enhance good governance. >>> >>> Figure 8.1: DCEI Indicator-Level Responses, AFE, 2022 Figure 8.2: Changes since 2020 Citizen Engagement Stats Public I-32 4 I-32 4% 22 8% Gov Platform for Citizen Feedback I-31 I-31 0% 13 13 27% Nat’l Platform for Citizen Particip I-30 8% 6 20 I-30 15% Open Data Portal I-29 15% 21 5 I-29 4% 4% Open Government Portal I-28 12 14 I-28 31% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% Yes No % Decrease % Increase Source: World Bank data (26 economies). Note: AFE = East and Southern Africa, DCEI = Digital Citizen Engagement Index. Between 2020 and 2022, there has been an improvement in the implementation status of open government portals in 31 percent of the countries and government platforms to capture feedback in 27 percent of the countries, revealing some positive developments (Figure 8.2). While open data portals are common (in 21 out 26 countries, or 81 percent), four countries (Angola, Burundi, Lesotho, and Malawi) have not been able to maintain dedicated platforms for sharing open data. Selected good practice cases related to digital citizen engagement are presented below: ● Tanzania’s data portal provides data covering agriculture, education, transport, and other major aspects of the economy, which are updated quarterly. However, the updates are manual in nature; hence, the country can benefit from dynamic updates via API. Additionally, the e-return platform is available for citizen feedback on public services. The platform enables citizens to track feedback and communicate with the government via an e-return app to improve universal accessibility. Guidance is also provided on the use of the platform through a video user guide to improve the user experience. ● Uganda. The Government Citizen Interaction Centre (GCIC), established in 2016, serves as the primary contact center of citizens in government to improve monitoring of service delivery. Through GCIC, citizens can engage with the government through many channels, including a toll-free line, email, social media platforms, websites, online chat, and SMS. Data generated through interactions is analyzed with the view to inform policy decisions, and to guide policy formulation. The Equal Opportunities Commission also provides a platform for citizens to make petitions. Furthermore, the Uganda open data portal embodies data updated quarterly. Like Tanzania, the data is basic (in terms of disaggregation despite the wide coverage) and is usually updated manually rather than automatically. Thus, there is also room for improvement in good-practice country cases in the region. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 12 GovTech Enablers Overall, more than 60 percent of the economies in AFE have dedicated digital government entities overseeing GovTech initiatives, GovTech entities focused on public sector innovation, and digital transformation strategies (Figure 9.1). However, public sector innovation strategies and the use of digital signatures to support public service delivery are relatively scarce, as they exist in only three and five countries, respectively, out of the 26 countries in the region. A focus on a whole-of-government approach, as well as strategies and programs designed to improve digital skills, is also limited, since positive responses were documented in only seven out of 26 countries (27 percent). Less than half of the countries in the region have dedicated government entities in charge of data governance, which is critical for information security and privacy, amid advancements in new technologies. As of December 2022, leaders in GovTech enablers are Mauritius, Tanzania, and Rwanda, with scores of 0.875, 0.866, and 0.804, respectively. Between 2020 and 2022, favorable developments have been noted in institutions dedicated to GovTech (85 percent of the countries), data governance (54 percent), and public sector innovation (38 percent) (Figure 9.2). Progress was also documented in the development of strategies and programs to improve digital skills (35 percent), as well as the establishment of digital signature solutions (35 percent). However, the state of broader digital transformation strategies retrogressed in 31 percent of the countries in AFE, including Kenya, Namibia, Rwanda, and Sudan. This reflects the need to update digital transformation strategies to capture current developments in digital governance/GovTech. >>> >>> Figure 9.1: GTEI Indicator-Level Responses, AFE, 2022 Figure 9.2: Changes since 2020 Gov Policy on GovTech Startups I-48 9 17 I-48 N 0% 15% I-47 4% Gov Entity for PS Innovation I-47 16 2 8 38% I-46 8% Public Sector Innovation Strategy I-46 3 8 15 19% I-45 8% Gov Strategy/Prog on Digital Skills I-45 7 4 15 35% 0% Digital Signature Platform I-42 5 10 11 I-42 35% 4% Data Protection Authority I-39 9 7 10 I-39 15% 8% Data Protection/Privacy Laws I-38 14 6 6 I-38 27% 8% Right to Information Laws I-37 14 2 10 I-37 8% 0% Whole-of-Government Approach I-36 7 7 12 I-36 38% 31% GovTech/Digital Transf Strategy I-35 19 3 4 I-35 8% 0% Dedicated Data Governance Entity I-34 9 6 11 I-34 54% 0% Dedicated DG/GovTech Entity I-33 20 2 4 I-33 85% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% Yes Planned / In progress No % Decrease % Increase Source: World Bank data (26 economies). Note: AFE = East and Southern Africa, DG = digital governance, GTEI = GovTech Enablers Index, N = new indicator, PS = public sector. Selected good practices and opportunities for improving the GTEI indicators are summarized below: ● Mauritius is the leading country in the region regarding the creation of an enabling environment for GovTech to thrive. The Ministry of Information Technology, Communication, and Innovation (MITCI, established in 1997) leads the government’s digital transformation, including strategy, e-services, digital skills, and innovation. A new digital government transformation strategy guides the GovTech ecosystem and pursues a whole-of-government approach. Through MauSign, digital signature regulations and resources are offered to enhance the delivery of public services. The digital skills strategy and related programs such as the Digital Industries Academy are guided by and embodied within the broader digital government strategy, with the view to create a national pool of talent. The National Innovation Framework (2018–2030), through the Mauritius Research and Innovation Council, also provides an enabling environment for public sector innovation to thrive through the provision of grants to support research and innovation activities. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 13 ● Tanzania’s e-Government Authority (established in 2012) provides vision and leadership regarding ICT policies, strategies, and operations, based on a whole-of-government approach. The current digital transformation strategy is at the draft stage; however, a whole-of-government approach has been institutionalized in the country. Additionally, the ICT Training Programme aims at equipping science and mathematics teachers with the requisite knowledge and skills of integrating ICT in the teaching and learning of science and mathematics subjects. There is, therefore, a focus on improving the digital skills of the youth. ● In Rwanda, the Rwanda Information Society Authority (RISA, established in 2017) is responsible for planning and coordinating the implementation of national ICT for Development Agenda. RISA also serves as a crosscutting enabler for the development of other sectors spearheading Rwanda’s digital and social economic transformation. While the 2020 Smart Rwanda Masterplan is dated, Rwanda follows a whole-of-government approach to public sector digital transformation. Rwanda reports the presence of existing digital signature regulation and public key infrastructure (PKI) services, available to support the delivery of public services. These systems need to be upgraded and used more widely. The World Bank is presently providing funding to enable this. Furthermore, in line with the National Digital Talent Policy, programs such as the Digital Ambassadors Programme are being implemented to strengthen the digital literacy of 5 million Rwandan citizens and their ensuing access and use of online systems and services. The Digital Acceleration Project (P173373) in Rwanda seeks to increase access to broadband and digital public services and strengthen the digital innovation ecosystem. This ongoing project tackles several GovTech focus areas by providing assistance on digital access and inclusion, public service delivery, and entrepreneurship and innovation; supporting digital identification and authentication; and linking digital IDs to digital payments and trusted data sharing. These initiatives will allow the government to develop its own reusable “technology stack” for scaled-up e-service delivery, by enabling presence-less, cashless, and paperless transactions (Rwanda is a member of the GovStack community of practice). Despite being at the initial phase, the project already has provided funding for the training of government officials to earn the CISSP certificate in cybersecurity, and has begun to scale up the Digital Ambassadors Programme. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 14 5. >>> Digital Governance/GovTech Projects In the Africa region, most of the World-Bank-funded digital governance (DG) projects have supported the establishment or modernization of core government systems, digital infrastructure, connectivity, social safety nets, health, education, and other sector applications within the last two decades. New activities (active and pipeline projects launched within the last five years) are focused on the implementation of new digital transformation programs, online service delivery channels, citizen engagement, and other critical components of the GovTech ecosystem. A summary of 205 DG investments funded by World Bank global practices since 1995 is presented in Table 2.5 This section presents an overview of World-Bank-funded activities led by related global practices supporting the public sector digital transformation in the region.6 The Governance Global Practice is leading 18 active and seven pipeline GovTech projects in 14 AFE countries to support the modernization and interoperability of core systems (FMIS, tax, HRMIS, etc.), extension of online public services, e-procurement portals, and ID management system modernization as a part of the public administration reforms. The Digital Development Global Practice (DD GP)7 is leading eight active and five pipeline projects in 11 countries to support digital transformation programs focused on connectivity, shared government platforms such as government cloud-based datacenters, data exchange and interoperability platforms, e-services delivery, cybersecurity, digital signatures and digital authentication, digital skills, establishment of foundational ID systems, and use of digital ID, among others.8 Other practices (Health; Education; Social Protection; Finance, Competitiveness and Innovation, and other units) are leading the remaining 27 active and four pipeline projects focused on sector- specific applications. Somalia, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Uganda, and Madagascar are the top five countries that have benefited from the DG/GovTech investments since 1995 (about 41 percent of the 205 projects). The current portfolio includes GovTech projects in 19 countries, and most of these are related to public financial management systems, public services, and GovTech enabling environment. Most of the active projects are in Somalia, supporting various critical digital solutions at the federal government and state levels. 5. The Digital Governance/GovTech Projects Database includes most of the World Bank Group’s investments since 1995. However, some of the recently approved projects or previous projects without a relevant theme code or tagging may not be visible in the dataset. 6. See World Bank. 2022. “An Overview of World Bank Group Digital Governance and GovTech Projects.” Equitable Growth, Finance & Institutions Notes – Governance. Washington DC: World Bank. 7. DD GP projects include an IDA commitment annex that describes the contribution to the GovTech agenda. 8. DD GP business lines include (1) Broadband Connectivity, Access, and Use; (2) Digital Data Infrastructure; (3) ICT Industry and Digital Jobs; (4) Digital Safeguards; (5) Digital for Climate; and (6) Accelerating Digital Use Cases Across Sectors. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 15 The Somalia Enhancing Public Resource Management Project (SERP) (P177298) was approved in December 2022 to strengthen accountability, transparency, and institutional capacity in public resource management across Somalia. The project will provide US$75 million financing over the next five years (2023–2027). While cloud-based public finance (FMIS, tax, customs), human resources management, and pension systems have been developed or are under development, they remain fragmented and are not yet interoperable. Also, the Unified Chart of Accounts and a standard reporting format (developed in 2022) are expected to be fully operational in 2023. The project will further contribute to ongoing public financial management reforms and improve cash flow to health and education sectors for service delivery, citizen engagement in budgeting, and availability of integrated data for decision-making. The project supports the GovTech agenda through effective coordination toward an integrated architecture for digital government, disaster recovery, capacity building, change management, and design of user-centric digital government. SERP will also contribute to IDA20 commitments on universally accessible GovTech, which highlights access to services for all regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, and disability. Digital Development teams are leading eight active and five pipeline large digital transformation projects to support country- specific priorities in Angola, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, São Tomé and Principe, Tanzania, and Uganda. They are also in charge of the Eastern Africa Regional Digital Integration Project (P176181) which will support eight AFE countries (notably with investment components in South Sudan and Somalia, and with a planned extension to Ethiopia, Djibouti, and possibly others). Digital Development teams are also leading the Mozambique Digital Acceleration Project (P176459) which aims to support digital adoption and inclusion through increased broadband penetration, access to mobile devices, and digital literacy, as well as cybersecurity and data protection. Other practices are contributing to most of these digital development projects. Governance teams are leading eight active and two pipeline GovTech projects in Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mozambique, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, and Zambia, which are mainly focused on online services and core government system modernization (FMIS, tax, e-procurement, HRMIS/payroll), as well as ID management system modernization. In Burundi, a GovTech component is expected to be included in an existing digital development project through additional financing. In Malawi and Uganda, digital development projects include components supporting e-procurement platforms. In Rwanda, UMUCYO, developed in July 2016, has been one of the most successful government service platforms for public procurement in the Africa region. World Bank funding will be used under the Digital Acceleration Project (P173373) to upgrade and add new features to the system. Other cross-practice activities are focused on new digital transformation initiatives to accelerate digitalization in key sectors including education, energy, health, trade, social protection, and transport, as well as payment systems, judicial reforms, statistics, and land administration. Additionally, the Geo-Enabling initiative for Monitoring and Supervision (GEMS) has been supporting the systematic enhancement of monitoring and evaluation, as well as supervision of investments in fragile and conflict-affected countries since 2018. The Identification for Development (ID4D) and Digitizing Government to Person Payments (G2Px) initiatives are also helping 10 countries in AFE (Angola, Burundi, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, São Tomé and Principe, and Somalia) in developing and implementing the comprehensive Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning (MEL) strategies; in building identification systems; and in transitioning to digital G2P payments. The ID4D program has also supported the development of a country case study about ID and civil registration systems in South Africa, and ID4D Diagnostics in 17 AFE countries (Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, São Tomé and Principe, Somalia, Sudan, Uganda, and Zambia). EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 16 In Ethiopia, the government is in the process of introducing Fayda (meaning “value” in some local languages), a new foundational ID system intended to address barriers the people of Ethiopia face in accessing and using local (kebele) IDs. Fayda also aims to enable digital transformation of the country, and facilitate access to social protection, healthcare, and financial services, among others. ID4D has been providing multidimensional technical assistance to the National ID Program (NIDP) to achieve the goals of universal accessibility and nondiscrimination for Fayda: (1) support to embed the Principles on Identification for Sustainable Development to the draft Digital ID proclamation, (2) conduct an exit survey with participants and officers in a registration pilot to identify potential barriers during enrollment processes, (3) complete a gender gap study to analyze the root causes of gender gaps in ownership of existing IDs in Ethiopia, and (4) initiate a broader social inclusion and risk study to support NIDP in identifying mitigation measures for potential barriers and concerns that different population groups may face in accessing and using Fayda vis-à-vis existing IDs in Ethiopia. Based on the findings of the 2021 ID4D Global ID coverage report and dataset, about 850 million people worldwide (around half are children), often individuals within the most marginalized and vulnerable groups, lack an officially recognized ID. Many more have IDs that are not suited for the digital age or that put their data privacy at risk. Based on the ID4D global dataset, the number of people without an ID is about 274 million in the region (39 percent of the 703 million total population in 26 countries). Future projects could also focus more on supporting sustainable identification systems to realize the global commitment to “leave no one behind.” EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 17 6. >>> Future Directions New projects could focus more on the adoption of a whole-of-government approach, digital citizen engagement, digital public infrastructure, data governance, cybersecurity, coordination of ongoing activities, monitoring and reporting of digital spending and results, and other key components of the GovTech enabling environment (e.g., leadership, effective regulations, accountable institutions, digital skills, innovation, and incentives for startups) to maximize the benefits of the government’s investments. The following opportunities exist in all countries to address key digital transformation challenges: ● Institutionalization of the whole-of-government approach by allocating the necessary resources, coordinating large-scale digital governance initiatives, and monitoring and reporting the results. ● Digital transformation of local government services, shared local infrastructure, and the intergovernmental fiscal relations. ● Use of technology and geospatial data and climate models to assess and mitigate the risks of climate change on public investments and assets. ● Transition to shared digital platforms (e.g., government private cloud, service bus, digital signature) for cost-effective, reliable, and secure hosting services. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 18 ● Improving the interoperability and interconnectivity of existing government systems and online services through government service bus and application programming interfaces (APIs), ideally based on open-source solutions. ● Building digital public infrastructure (DPI) to enable the provision of essential society-wide functions and services for identification and authentication, data exchange, and payments that are fundamental to social and economic development. ● Daily use of existing PFM information systems (FMIS, tax, e-procurement, HRMIS) to record and report all transactions for decision support, performance monitoring, and timely web publishing of budget results. ● Additional investments on technical/digital skills development and public sector innovation to ensure the sustainability and expansion of digital solutions, with a focus on gender balance. ● Alignment of the development partner support, and agreement on a clear strategic plan for digital transformation to avoid duplication of investments and activities. ● Exploration of the use of artificial intelligence/machine learning in specific public sector applications in collaboration with the private sector and civil society organizations. ● Allocation of adequate government resources for the operation and maintenance of existing systems/platforms to ensure their sustainability. ● Focusing more on improving Internet access, concrete outcomes for the citizens, and digitalization of end-to-end public services in the next generation of digital transformation projects. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 19 >>> Resources ● The GovTech Data Dashboard presents maps and graphs allowing users to digest and explore the findings of the GovTech Dataset and the GovTech projects database. ● The GovTech Dataset presents the GTMI data for 198 economies. ● The GovTech projects database presents the details of more than 1,450 activities funded by the World Bank in 147 countries since 1995. ● DE4A Country Diagnostics, Digital Development, July 2022. ● ID4D Global Dataset, Digital Development, December 2022. ● ID4D Principles, 2021 (2nd Edition). ● ID4D Practitioner’s Guide, October 2019. ● GEMS: Geo-Enabling initiative for Monitoring and Supervision9 managed by the Fragility, Conflict and Violence (FCV) Group. GovTech publications are classified into five categories: crosscutting, core government systems, public service delivery, citizen engagement, and GovTech enablers. ● GovTech Maturity Index, 2022 Update: Trends in Public Sector Digital Transformation, Equitable Growth, Finance & Institutions (EFI) Insight – Governance, December 2022. ● An Overview of World Bank Group Digital Governance and GovTech Projects, EFI Notes – Governance, December 2022. ● Interoperability: Towards a Data-Driven Public Sector, EFI Insight – Governance, January 2023. ● CivicTech: Transparency, Engagement, and Collaboration for Better Governance, EFI Insight – Governance, July 2022. ● Tech Savvy: Advancing GovTech Reforms in Public Administration, EFI Insight – Governance, April 2022. ● Service Upgrade: The GovTech Approach to Citizen Centered Services, EFI Insight – Governance, March 2022. ● Institutional and Procurement Practice Note on Cloud Computing, EFI Insight – Governance, March 2023. ● Data Classification Matrix and Cloud Assessment Framework, EFI Insight – Governance, March 2023. ● Mobile Government How-To Note, EFI Insight – Governance, March 2023. ● How-To Note on Green GovTech (forthcoming). 9. As of October 2022, GEMS has been implemented in more than 100 countries. More than 900 project teams and 6,500 government staff and partners have benefited from the digital skills and tools provided. GEMS has been used extensively for remote supervision and enhanced monitoring and evaluation of project implementation, risk and safeguards monitoring, beneficiary engagement, and security assessments in Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Djibouti, Democratic Republic of Congo, Guinea, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Myanmar, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Republic of Congo, Senegal, Somalia, South Sudan, Uganda, and several Pacific island states. EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES <<< 20 >>> Table 2: Digital Governance/GovTech Projects, AFE, 2022 2020 2022 Change GovTech Focus Areas DG/GovTech Projects Funding ($ million) Country Pop (m) % UP Grp GTMI Grp GTMI Grp GTMI CGS PSD DCE GTE Completed Active Pipeline Tot Comm Tot Disb Tot DG Angola C 0.481 C 0.447 ¥ ¤ 4 1 - 3 34.504 26.5 2 2 1 707 292 487 Botswana C 0.372 C 0.369 ¥ ¤ - - - - 2.588 6.4 - - - - - - Burundi¯ C 0.259 C 0.414 ¥ £ 5 3 1 2 12.551 13.7 4 1 1 156 108 70 Comoros¯ D 0.137 C 0.262 £ £ 5 - - 1 0.822 22.3 3 2 - 79 58 30 Congo, Dem. Rep.¯ D 0.231 C 0.299 £ £ 11 6 - 1 95.894 32.6 8 2 1 1,487 1,175 430 Eritrea¯ D 0.059 D 0.049 ¥ ¤ 1 1 - - 3.620 68.0 2 - - 96 99 4 Eswatini C 0.280 C 0.394 ¥ £ 1 - - - 1.192 46.5 - 1 - 20 5 8 Ethiopia¯ C 0.336 B 0.580 £ £ 18 6 3 6 120.283 64.6 14 5 3 4,445 3,769 1,263 Kenya B 0.576 B 0.745 ¥ £ 16 7 1 2 53.006 19.7 13 3 1 2,419 2,005 692 Lesotho C 0.327 C 0.385 ¥ £ 10 1 - - 2.281 38.6 9 - 1 198 178 51 Madagascar C 0.257 C 0.312 ¥ £ 12 3 - 3 28.916 17.7 8 3 2 822 594 319 Malawi C 0.384 C 0.284 ¥ ¤ 11 6 - 3 19.890 23.1 10 3 - 666 537 177 Mauritius B 0.574 A 0.864 £ £ - - - - 1.299 2.1 - - - - - - Mozambique¯ C 0.350 C 0.353 ¥ £ 18 6 - 5 32.077 43.2 11 7 1 1,544 1,002 750 Namibia C 0.307 C 0.416 ¥ £ - - - - 2.530 13.7 - - - - - - Rwanda B 0.526 B 0.678 ¥ £ 7 4 1 3 13.462 10.1 4 3 - 578 331 236 São Tomé & Principe D 0.224 D 0.218 ¥ ¤ 2 1 - 1 0.223 46.5 1 1 - 25 4 13 Seychelles C 0.417 C 0.452 ¥ £ - - - - 0.106 0.4 - - - - - - Somalia¯ D 0.190 C 0.265 £ £ 10 6 - 3 17.066 94.1 4 6 1 489 326 205 South Africa A 0.772 B 0.562 ¤ ¤ - - - - 59.392 7.5 - - - - - - South Sudan¯ D 0.112 D 0.131 ¥ £ 4 2 1 1 10.748 75.8 3 1 - 73 38 35 Sudan¯ D 0.181 D 0.222 ¥ £ 4 1 - - 45.657 33.0 3 1 - 151 100 61 Tanzania B 0.555 A 0.860 £ £ 18 3 - 3 63.588 56.8 14 4 - 2,330 1,745 590 Uganda B 0.639 A 0.858 £ £ 16 3 1 4 45.854 45.7 14 4 1 1,579 1,150 440 Zambia C 0.408 B 0.554 £ £ 15 4 1 1 19.473 42.5 11 4 - 1,333 899 207 Zimbabwe¯ C 0.390 C 0.460 ¥ £ 1 1 - - 15.994 30.4 1 - - 10 10 5 Totals 703.017 39.0 139 53 13 19,207 14,423 6,075 EQUITABLE GROWTH, FINANCE & INSTITUTIONS NOTES Source: World Bank data (205 digital governance/GovTech investments funded by World Bank since 1995). Note: GovTech Focus Areas present the number of projects supporting the prioritized GovTech pillars including core government systems (CGS), public service delivery (PSD), digital citizen engagement (DCE), and GovTech enablers (GTE). Total commitments and disbursements are shown together with the total investments on digital government/GovTech solutions. AFE = East and Southern Africa; DG = digital governance; GTMI = GovTech Maturity Index; Pop (m) = Population (in million), 2021 UN database; % UP = Estimated percentage of unregistered population (using separate metric rates for children and adults without IDs based on ID4D-Findex, administrative data, and voter <<< 21 registration and birth registration rates), 2021 ID4D dataset. Fragile and conflict-affected economies are shown with (¯).