egovernance for reducing corruption...
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eGovernance For Reducing Corruption In Public Service Delivery: Case Study of Fiji
By Rafia Naz
A thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts
School of Management and Public Administration The University of the South Pacific
September, 2006
© Rafia Naz 2006
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Declaration of Originality
I, Rafia Naz hereby declare that this thesis is my own work and that, to the best of
my knowledge, it contains no materials previously published, or substantially
overlapping with material submitted for the award of any other degree at any
institution except where due acknowledgement is made in the text.
Signed
------------------------
(Rafia Naz)
September 2006
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Acknowledgement I wish to sincerely acknowledge the contribution of my two supervisors, Dr
Mohammed Habibur Rahman and Professor Raghuvar Dutt Pathak from the School
of Management and Public Administration for their assistance and support and for
their optimism and interest that facilitated the completion of this thesis. Their
effective supervision, timely support, guidance and valuable insights have helped
throughout the research. I also thank Dr Mahendra Reddy (Director Postgraduate
Affairs) for his support and encouragement.
Many thanks to Dr Graham Hassall (Professor and Head of Pacific Institute of
Advanced Studies in Development and Governance at University of the South Pacific)
and Dr Ron Duncan (Executive Director Governance Studies Programme at University
of the South Pacific) for their timely assistance and feedback on this thesis.
I thank all the respondents who assisted in the eGovernance survey and to Ms Salote
Radrodro (Corporate Services Manager, Public Service Commission) for giving
permission to distribute questionnaires. Mr Umesh Chand (Manager Workforce
Training and Development, Public Service Commission) and Mr Dinesh Prakash
(Administrative Officer, Public Service Commission) assistance in having
questionnaires distributed and collected is highly appreciated.
I would like to extend my appreciation to all the interviewee farmers and the
Ministry of Agriculture extension officers for their kind cooperation in helping in
interview process for the case study. My sincere gratitude to Mr Chandar Prakash
(Extension Officer) for his generous support and for his wealth of experience that
helped in analyzing the case study.
My family has provided tremendous support during the period of this thesis. The
help, moral support and prayers of my mother Ms Nazmun Nisha has motivated me
and led to the successful completion of this research. I would like to acknowledge
the contribution of Ms Barbara Hau‘ofa, the editor of this thesis, without whom it
would not have achieved the standard it has. Finally, I take the full responsibility of
any flaws in this thesis.
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Dedication
This thesis is dedicated to my late grandmother and my beloved mother. Their
prayers and unwavering faith and encouragement was of great help to me throughout
my research.
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Abstract
Using ICT in the form of eGovernance could yield great benefits in the reform and
modernization of the public sector. The experience of eGovernance in a number of
developed and developing countries has shown that ICT can be a tool for greater
transparency with the goal of reducing corruption. eGovernance can also promote
‘good governance’, that is, greater civic engagement, increased opportunities for
direct representation and voice, and support for increased democracy.
This paper discusses and presents the survey findings that seek to test the role of
eGovernance in reducing corruption by altering the principal-agent relationship. It
further presents a case study on public service delivery to highlight the principal-
agent problems in real context and suggest how eGovernance can help.
The challenges and issues in implementing eGovernance for reducing corruption are
highlighted and a number of policy recommendations, outlining the components for a
national and regional strategy to achieve the benefits of eGovernance in Fiji is
presented. Strong leadership is required to implement eGovernance to capture and
internalise the benefits of reduced corruption.
Given the challenges and the preponderant role of the State in economic activity, this
paper asks whether the advent and diffusion of new media, information and
communication technologies and their embodiment into eGovernance could be an
important factor in transforming the public service delivery system and effecting an
awakening, a renaissance in Fiji? Could eGovernance as the title suggests, be a tool,
become the embodiment of technology for “good governance with the ultimate thrust
on corruption reduction”. The answer is a cautious, qualified, yes.
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Table of Contents
Page No. Declaration of Originality ii Acknowledgement iii Dedication iv Abstract v Acronyms xiii
Chapters
1. Introduction 1 1.1 Background 1
1.2 Key Concepts Defined 8
1.3 Selected Theoretical Models 16
1.4 Current Debates Around eGovernance 25
1.5 Organization of the Thesis 27
2. Literature Review 29
2.1 Introduction 29
2.2 Overview: eGovernance for Reducing Corruption in
Public Service Delivery 29
2.3 Global Scenario 37
2.3.1 Electronic Service Delivery 40
2.3.2 Public Outreach 41
2.3.3 Top eGovernance Countries 41
2.4 The Pacific Context 43
2.5 eGovernance Policies and Practices in Fiji 47
2.6 Problem Statement 52
2.7 Objectives of the Study 53
2.7.1 General Objectives 53
2.7.2 Specific Objectives 53
2.8 Hypotheses 53
2.9 Core Research Questions 54
2.10 Justification/Focus of Research 54
2.11 Conclusion 55
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3. Methodology 56
3.1 Introduction 56
3.2 Methodology 56
3.3 Research Tools 57
3.3.1 Quantitative Research: Survey Using Questionnaire 58
3.3.1.1 Designing Questionnaires 61
3.4 Data Analyses 65
3.4.1 Getting Data Ready For Analyses 66
3.4.2 Coding 66
3.4.3 Getting A Feel For Data 66
3.4.4 Testing Goodness of Data 67
3.4.5 Hypotheses Testing 67
3.4.5.1 Types of Variables 68
3.5 Qualitative Approach 71
3.5.1 Case Study Approach 71
3.5.2 Case Study Selection Criteria 73
3.5.2.1 Sources of Data Collection 73
3.5.2.1.1 Primary Sources 73
3.5.2.1.1.1 Face to Face Interviews 73
3.5.2.1.1.2 Primary and Secondary Document 76
3.5.3 The Recording, Verification and Analyses of Data 77
3.6 Scope and Research Limitations 78
3.7 Conclusion 79
4. Results and Analyses 80
4.1 Introduction 80
4.2 Demographic Profile of the Sample 80
4.3 View on Public Service Corruption In Fiji 81
4.4 Effectiveness and Responsiveness of Public Officials In Interacting
With Citizens 83
4.5 Awareness of eGovernance 85
4.6 Hypotheses Testing 86
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4.6.1 Hypothesis 1 87
4.6.2 Hypothesis 2 88
4.6.3 Hypothesis 3 88
4.6.4 Hypothesis 4 89
4.7 Motivating Factors 90
4.8 Compelling Reasons For the Public Service To Develop and
Implement eGovernance 96
4.9 Priority Features 100
4.10 Issues in eGovernance 103
4.10.1 Requirements for Successfully Using eGovernance In Reducing
Corruption 103
4.11 Requirements for Successful Implementation of ICTs/eGovernance
For Fighting Public Sector Corruption 106
4.12 Barriers 108
4.13 Overcoming Barriers 109
4.14 Any Other Suggestions That Will Assist Fiji’s Public Service
Delivery Organizations 110
4.15 eGovernance Integration 111
4.16 Conclusion 112
5. Case Presentation and Analyses 5.1 Introduction 113
5.2 Overview of the Case 113
5.3 Corruption in the Field of Bureaucracy in Fiji: The Case
Of Ministry of Agriculture Rural Extension Service
Delivery 114
5.3.1 Implications 120
5.3.2 Potential Role Of eGovernance In Improving Service
Delivery and Reducing Corruption 122
6. Summary of Findings, Recommendation and Conclusion 125
6.1 Introduction 125
6.2 Overview of Findings 127
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6.3 Recommendations/ Policy Implications 139
6.4 Future Research 142
6.5 Conclusion 142
References 145
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List of Appendices
2.1: Pacific Islands ICT Profile 187
3.1: Questionnaire 196
3.2: Breakdown of Random Sampling For Questionnaire Survey 207
3.3: Interview List (Pseudonyms) For Public Officials 209
3.4: Interview Questions For Public Officials 211
3.5 Interview List (Pseudonyms) For Farmers 217
3.6: Interview Questions For Farmers 232
5.1: RF1 Forms 234
5.2: RF1A Forms (Approval Notice; Criteria For Eligibility) 238
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List of Figures
1.1: Hypothesized Model 20
2.1: eReadiness Ranking for Pacific Island Countries 46
2.2: e-Fiji Policy Framework 50
6.1: Success Factors/Requirements 134
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List of Tables
2.1: Percentage of Government Sites Offering Online Services By
Region of the World 40
2.2: eGovernance Rating By Region 42
2.3: Sector Statistics: Rural Telecommunication November 2003 51
3.1: Population Figures For Central, Western and Northern Divisions 59
3.2: Hypotheses Testing and Constructs in Questionnaire 70
4.1: Socio-Demographics of the Sample (N = 400) 81
4.2: Views on Public Service Corruption in Fiji 81
4.3: Views on Bureaucratic Corruption Increasing in Public
Service Delivery 82
4.4: Rating Public Service Corruption 82
4.5: Time Factor in Dealing With Public Service Delivery 83
4.6: Cost Factor in Dealing With Public Service Delivery 84
4.7: Public Service Red-tape Procedures 85
4.8: Awareness Level of eGovernance 86
4.9: View on ICT/eGovernance in Curbing Corruption 86
4.10: Reliability Test Scores 86
4.11: Hypothesis 1 Results – Correlation 87
4.12: Hypothesis 2 Results – Correlation 88
4.13: Hypothesis 3 Results – Chi-Squared 88
4.14: Regression Results for H4 – Coefficients 89
4.15: Motivating Factors and Pressure Points for Using eGovernance
In Fiji – Respondent Assessment 91
4.16: Compelling Reasons for Public Services to Develop and Implement
eGovernance In Fiji – A Respondent View 97
4.17: Priority Features of An eGovernance Application In Fiji –
Respondent View 101
4.18: Requirements/Drivers Of Success For Using eGovernance In Fiji –
Respondents View 103
5.1: Farmer Profile 115
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Acronyms
ADB Asian Development Bank
BAAP Bangkok Agenda Action Plan
CPST&D Centre for Public Service Training and Development
CROP Council of Regional Organization in the Pacific
DOP Declaration of Principles
ESCAP Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific
FMIS Financial Management Information System
FSM Federated States of Micronesia
GDP Gross Domestic Product
GII Government Information Infrastructure
GIS Geographic Information System
G2G Government-to-Government
G2B Government-to-Business
G2C Government-to-Citizens
G2D Government-to-Donor
IACC International Anti-Corruption Conference
ICT Information and Communication Technologies
ISP Internet Service Provider
ITAC International Telecommuting Advisory Council
ITC Information Technology and Computing Services
ITU International Telecommunication Union
JICA Japanese International Cooperation Agency
MDG Millennium Development Goals
MIS Management Information System
NDESK Nai-Disha Ekal Sewa Kendra
NGO Non Governmental Organization
NPM New Public Management
OECD Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
OPEN Online Procedures Enhancement
PDA Personal Digital Assistant
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PEACESAT Pan-Pacific Education and Communication Experiments by
Satellite
PICs Pacific Island Countries
PIIP Pacific Islands Information and Communication Technology
Policy and Strategic Plan
PITA Pacific Islands Telecommunication Association
POA Plan of Action
PPP Public Private Partnership
Prepcom Preparatory Committee’
PUMA Public Management
SMART Simple, Moral, Accountable, Responsive and Transparent
SMS Short Message Service / Standard Monitoring System
TQM Total Quality Management
TV Television
UN United Nations
UNDP United Nations Development Programme
UNESCAP United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and
the Pacific
UNESCO United Nations Economic Social And Cultural Organization
UNMDG United Nations Millennium Development Goals
UNMS United Nations Millennium Summit
USP University of the South Pacific
WPSR World Public Sector Report
WSIS World Summit on Information Society
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Chapter 1
Introduction
1.1 Background The concept eGovernance is defined as the application of information technology to
the government processes to bring Simple, Moral, Accountable, Responsive, and
Transparent (SMART) governance (Budhiraja, 2005; Rajashekar, 2002, cited in Jain
and Ramani, 2005; Heeks, 2001a; Harris, 2004). A working definition of
eGovernance can be taken as a form of governance that seeks to realize processes
and structures by harnessing the potentialities of Information and Communication
Technologies (ICTs) at various levels of government, the public sector and beyond
for the purpose of promoting good governance. eGovernance is a method by which
governments are empowering citizens to act for themselves without having to go
through bureaucracy. Government, perhaps more than any other organization, can
benefit from the efficiencies and improved service that stem from digital processes
(Toshifumi and Himanshu, 2004). Therefore, the simple objective of eGovernance is
to support and simplify governance for an eGovernance community consisting of
citizens, civil society organizations, private companies, government lawmakers, and
regulators on networks (Tapscott and Agnew, 1999, cited in Jain and Ramani, 2005).
Evolution of the word ‘eGovernance’ has to be viewed at the crossroad of two major
shifts – governance and the information revolution. The forces of globalization, with
the emergence of ICTs, has had a profound impact on the development of the notion
of eGovernance. ICT replaced two basic elements of production, ‘labour’ and
‘capital’, by ‘information’ and ‘knowledge’ for the first time in the last two
centuries.1 The Internet created the same sort of break-through as the printing press
had done in the 15th century. It shaped the ability to communicate, share, distribute,
exchange, formalize, use and network information at a speed that has not been
1 The Enterprise Development Website: The Knowledge Economy Accessed 2 February 2004 from: <http://www.enterweb.org/know.htm> cited in http://av.rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0Je5W199eNCqXwA7ktrCqMX;_ylu=X3oDMTBvdmM3bGlxBHBndANhdl93ZWJfcmVzdWx0BHNlYwNzcg--/SIG=124bcg2ul/EXP=1122322173/**http%3a//www.vecam.org/edm/IMG/doc/final_paper.doc
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experienced before. Moore’s law 2 highlights that the processing power of
microchips is doubling every 18 months with a trend of 20–30% decline in quality
adjustment prices for computers. This means computers are getting cheaper, more
powerful and ubiquitous, making the networking and automation of services viable
to government. Political activism, on the other hand, is also using the space, with an
increased number of public interest groups and community or voluntary
organizations propagating their demands and activities in the electronic network.
On the governance side, the Weberian3 principles of bureaucratic governance are
being replaced with the trends of horizontal, leaner, dynamic and networked
governance. Administrative reform and developments have experienced total quality
management 4 (TQM) in the 1980s, and ‘re-engineering and re-inventing of
Government’ in the 1990s. eGovernance reflects this process of ongoing re-
invention and re-engineering in governance and ‘is aimed at adapting administration
to the further increasing flow of information: accelerating the process of decision
making by optimizing resources, and making the mechanism for decision making
self-regulating’ (Baey, 2003). This led ‘governance’ to be defined independently
from ‘the act of government’ to the practice of getting the consent and cooperation of
the governed. The concrete objective of eGovernance is to support and simplify
governance for all parties—government, citizens and businesses. In other words,
eGovernance uses electronic means to support and stimulate good governance with
the emphasis on reducing corruption (Backus, 2001).
There is a wealth of literature dedicated to defining the enormously rich term of
corruption. For the purpose of this thesis corruption is defined as the ‘use of public
office for private gains’ (Bardhan, 1997, cited in Camerer, 1997). This definition
2 A founder of Intel Corporation, Gordon Moore made his observation in 1965, four years after the first planar integrated circuit was discovered. The press called it "Moore's Law" and the name has stuck. More information can be found at: http://www.intel.com/research/silicon/mooreslaw.htm 3 Max Weber has given the ideal typical model of Bureaucracy. The Weberian model categorically focuses on two dimensions: (i) The Structural, relating to the hierarchical arrangement of positions, the legal rational basis of authority, with system of compensation, and (ii) The Behavioural, relating to the merit based selections of officials with the emphasis on training. For details see Backus (2001). 4 Total Quality Management (TQM). Accessed 4 February 2004 from: <http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&oi=defmore&q=define:TQM> cited in http://av.rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0Je5W199eNCqXwA7ktrCqMX;_ylu=X3oDMTBvdmM3bGlxBHBndANhdl93ZWJfcmVzdWx0BHNlYwNzcg--/SIG=124bcg2ul/EXP=1122322173/**http%3a//www.vecam.org/edm/IMG/doc/final_paper.doc
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confines itself to public sector corruption. A similar definition is given by Rose-
Ackerman (1999: 3) who describes
corruption as a symptom that something has gone wrong in the management of the state. Institutions designed to govern the interrelationships between the citizen and the state is used instead for personal enrichment and the provision of benefits to the corrupt. The price mechanism, so often a source of economic efficiency and a contributor to growth, in the form of bribery, undermines the legitimacy and effectiveness of government.
In this definition, a number of key themes are highlighted. The first is, if authority
and power of the government are used indiscriminately for private gains then it
results in bad governance. Secondly, how information is used is critical to
governance. The manner in which information is used in governance processes and
procedures is the deciding factor as to whether it is good governance or bad
governance. In the case of good governance, the proportionate distribution of
information is uniform across the public administration system. In the case of bad
governance, extensive information is out of reach of the common man, resulting in a
concentration of information only to the privileged who often use this power of
information in a discriminatory manner for their own interests, benefits and gains.
Lastly, the basis of good governance is informed-decision making. Well-informed
decision making is critically dependent upon the quality and timeliness of
information. Unlimited access to information of reliable quality at the right time is
essential for well-informed decision making and hence for good governance. Poor
quality and out-dated information leads to poor decision making and ends up in bad
governance. On the other hand, restriction on access to information leads to
manipulation. Managing information is therefore central to the realization and
institutionalization of good governance in the public administration system
(Chaurasia, 2003).
In view of the above the focus is on the public sector because evidence worldwide
shows that the public sector has been plagued with corrupt practices. Evidence
shows that corruption is rampant in as many as 60 countries and the public sector is
plagued by bribery. Transparency International’s 5 Corruption Perception Index
(CPI) (2004) ranks a record 146 countries as prone to high corruption. A total of 106 5 Transparency International is the leading non governmental organization fighting corruption worldwide.
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out of 146 countries score less than 5 against a clean score of 10. Sixty countries
score less than 3 out of 10, indicating rampant corruption. Corruption is perceived to
be most acute in Bangladesh, Haiti, Nigeria, Chad, Myanmar, Azerbaijan and
Paraguay, all of which have a score of less than 2. In some of these countries, public
contracting in the oil sector is plagued by revenues vanishing into the pockets of
western oil executives, middlemen and local officials. Countries with a score of
higher than 9, with very low levels of perceived corruption, are predominantly rich
countries, namely Finland, New Zealand, Denmark, Iceland, Singapore, Sweden and
Switzerland. But the poorest countries, most of which are in the bottom half of the
index, are in greatest need of support in fighting corruption.6 The main drivers of
corruption that the literature identifies are economic, political and cultural factors
(Garcia-Murillo and Vinod, 2005). Taking the political factors into account, political
science has approached the phenomenon of corruption in terms of regime type and
searched for its causes in authoritarianism versus democracy and in development-
oriented regimes versus neo-patrimonial rule. Besides, corruption has also been
looked at according to institutional characteristics like the balance of power between
the state institutions, judicial independence and the strength of the parliament in
counterbalancing the executive branch, different models of hierarchy and
bureaucracy including the effect of the numerous civil service reforms, and power
de-concentration efforts like privatisation, deregulation and decentralisation.
Furthermore, in the struggle against corruption, various institutional control
mechanisms have been evaluated, like parliamentary control, executive control,
internal bureaucratic controls, audit and watchdog bodies. Extensive cross-national
studies link corruption to a wide range of factors. Such studies confirm that
corruption tends to be higher in countries at lower levels of economic and human
development, with lower levels of education, limited political rights, weak or non-
existent political competition, a relatively large state role in the economy, lower
levels of economic freedom and openness, ethno-linguistic factionalism, the lack of
judicial independence and a free press, low civil service wages, abundant natural
resource endowments, low levels of interpersonal trust, and high levels of
permissiveness toward corruption, among others (on the causes of corruption see
6 Accessed 10 June 2005 from: < http://www.sq.4mg.com/corrupt.htm; http://www.transparency.org >
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Ades and DiTella, 1997; Johnston, 1999; Kaufmann and Wei, 1999; LaPorta et al.,
1999; Mauro, 1995, 1997; Tanzi, 1994, 1998; Triesman, 1999).
The origins of the causes/drivers of corruption can be traced to the work of Rose-
Ackerman (1973, 1978, 1994, 2004) and Klitgaard (1988, 1995a, 1995b). In this
thesis, the researcher has also drawn upon the work of Kaufmann (2003, 2005) and
Lambsdorff (2001). These authors have identified the drivers of corruption to be: (i)
monopoly of power; (ii) discretion; and (iii) lack of accountability and transparency.
These critics have explored drivers of corruption by basing their work on the
principal–agent theory. Shah and Schacter (2004) suggest that to be able to
understand the drivers of corruption, the researchers must be able to pinpoint the
theoretical perspectives of corruption. This research is based on the principal–agent
theory, which will be further explained in sub-section 1.3. The focus of the study is
limited to the principal–agent theoretical framework and as a result does not include
the governance indicators which are outside the scope of this study.
A recent survey by Transparency International shows that corruption is evident in the
South Pacific.7 Surveys by Larmour (1997) and Crocombe (2001) also allege that
corruption is evident in the South Pacific, especially in the public sector. Results of
the survey carried out by Toatu (2004) show that corruption has had a deleterious
effect on the growth performance of South Pacific economies, reducing gross
domestic product (GDP) growth rates by approximately two percentage points. The
results highlight a very strong relationship between the level of corruption and the
level of public investment and/or the size of the public sector in the South Pacific
Countries. All publicized cases of corruption in Pacific countries involving
politicians and public officials tend to be in the nature of kickbacks, palm greasing,
rank pulling, and other misuse and abuse of public funds or public office.8 Analysis
of the National Integrity Country Study Reports for the South Pacific,9 suggest that
7 National Integrity Systems Pacific Islands Overview Report. 2004. [online]. Accessed 14 October 2005 from <http://www.transparency.org/activities/nat_integ_systems/dnld/nispac_overwiew_report2004.pdf> 8 Country Governance Assessments: Governance in the Pacific: Focus for Action 2005–2009. [online]. Accessed 10 June 2005 from <http://www.adb.org/Documents/Books/Governance-in-the-Pacific/part2.pdf> 9 The Country Study Reports by Transparency International 2005 was analyzed for the following South Pacific economies: Nauru, Palau, Vanuatu, Cook Islands, Kiribati, Samoa, Tonga, Federated States of Micronesia, Marshall Islands, Niue, Solomons and Tuvalu.
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the main drivers of corruption in these economies are: lack of a social and welfare
system, lack of understanding on causes and effects of corruption, lack of personal
values to deny corruption, and lack of personal responsibility and willingness to
change. Furthermore, at all levels there is an acceptance of the status quo in terms of
political and social hierarchies, bureaucratic and regulatory inefficiencies, hardship
and opportunity followed by a conducive public service environment, lack of
watchdog agencies, lack of institutional capacity and mechanisms of accountability,
lack of civil society involvement, poor pay, lack of political will, reluctance to
enforce laws, lack of legislative mechanisms to punish and deter corruption,
economic difficulties, and tradition and culture.10
The governance index developed by Gani and Duncan (2004) also considered the
government effectiveness dimension that consists of bureaucratic efficiency,
economic management, and corruption. The results for the period 1985 to 2002
reflect that the government effectiveness index from 1985 to 1999 was on a peak and
then from 2000 till 2002 it declined drastically. The Transparency International CPI
2005 for Asia and the Pacific ranks Fiji with a CPI of 4.0. However, many Asia-
Pacific countries have performed poorly, with 13 out of 25 countries scoring at or 10 National Integrity Systems Country Study Report Nauru 2004. [online]. Accessed 14 October 2005 from <http://www.transparency.org.au/nispac/nauru.pdf> National Integrity Systems Country Study Report Palau 2004. [online]. Accessed 14 October 2005 from <http://www.transparency.org.au/nispac/palau.pdf > National Integrity Systems Country Study Report Vanuatu 2004. [online]. Accessed 14 October 2005 from <http://www.transparency.org.au/nispac/vanuatu.pdf> National Integrity Systems Country Study Report Cook Islands 2004. [online]. Accessed 14 October 2005 from <http://www.transparency.org.au/nispac/cookislands.pdf> National Integrity Systems Country Study Report Kiribati 2004. [online]. Accessed 14 October 2005 from <http://www.transparency.org.au/nispac/kiribati.pdf> National Integrity Systems Country Study Report Samoa 2004. [online]. Accessed 14 October 2005 from <http://www.transparency.org.au/nispac/samoa.pdf> National Integrity Systems Country Study Report Tonga 2004. [online]. Accessed 14 October 2005 from <http://www.transparency.org.au/nispac/tonga.pdf> National Integrity Systems Country Study Report Federated States of Micronesia 2004. [online]. Accessed 14 October 2005 from <http://www.transparency.org.au/nispac/fedstatesmicronesia.pdf> National Integrity Systems Country Study Report Marshall Islands 2004. [online]. Accessed 14 October 2005 from <http://www.transparency.org.au/nispac/marshallislands.pdf> National Integrity Systems Country Study Report Niue 2004. [online]. Accessed 14 October 2005 from <http://www.transparency.org.au/nispac/niue.pdf> National Integrity Systems Country Study Report Solomons 2004. [online]. Accessed 14 October 2005 from <http://www.transparency.org.au/nispac/solomon%20islands.pdf> National Integrity Systems Country Study Report Tuvalu 2004. [online]. Accessed 14 October 2005 from < http://www.transparency.org.au/nispac/tuvalu.pdf> National Integrity Systems Country Study Report Kiribati 2004. [online]. Accessed 14 October 2005 from <http://www.transparency.org.au/nispac/kiribati.pdf>
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below 3.0, reflecting perceptions of endemic corruption. In line with this, Fiji has a
moderate ranking. 11 Also as per the National Integrity Systems Country Study
Report Fiji (2001) the various alleged/perceived types of corruption in existence in
Fiji’s public sector include kick backs, greasing the palms, nepotism/cronyism, rank
pulling, unfair and unethical decisions on public procurement and misuse/abuse of
public funds. Transparency International, in its 2001 report on the Fiji Islands, noted
with concern that ‘greasing the palms of public servants’ is fast becoming an
‘accepted way of life in the Fiji Islands’.12 A report prepared by the Fiji Law Reform
Commission (2003) further noted that corruption in Fiji is on the rise, stating similar
forms of corruption. In addition, Fiji Auditor General’s Reports, 1999–2002, have
all highlighted excessive corruption including rent seeking behavior, bribery, scams
and mismanagement of funds (Auditor General Reports, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002).
The reports by the Fiji Law Commission and National Integrity Systems highlight
the costs of corruption to the nation, which include: personal losses, loss of time,
development cost, political cost, decline in work ethics and degradation of values and
cost to the economy (Fiji Law Reform Commission, 2003; National Integrity Report,
2001).
Several news reports have highlighted that corruption in Fiji is increasing. 13
Professor Scott MacWilliam with Professor Ron Duncan, Professor Vijay Naidu and
Father Kevin Barr, speaking at the ‘Fiji Update 2002’, pointed out that corruption
and bad governance were evident in Fiji (USP Beat, 2002; Naidu and Barr, 2002). It
is estimated that the overall debt position in 2001 due to corruption was $1.68
billion, and it had increased in 2002 to $1.87 billion and in 2003 to $1.91 billion.
Former Labour Party member Gyani Nand comments that if corruption in Fiji had
not been high then it could have compared with nations like Singapore. Therefore,
looking at so many public sector scandals that have occurred, which have cost the
11 Transparency International. Asia and the Pacific Regional Highlights Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) 2005. Accessed 14 October 2005 from <http://www.transparency.org> 12 Country Governance Assessments: Governance in the Pacific: Focus for Action 2005–2009. Accessed 10 June 2005 from: <http://www.adb.org/Documents/Books/Governance-in-the-Pacific/part2.pdf > 13 Accessed 10 June 2005 from: <www.oag.gov.fj>.
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country in millions to date—positive results in combating corruption could have been
achieved.14
The literature stresses that the recent ICT explosion has brought about an extensive
debate on the potential role that new technologies hold for reshaping public
governance and reforming the institutions of representative democracy (see Hacker
and Van Dijk, 2000; Bennett and Entman, 2001; DiMaggio et al., 2001, cited in Cisar,
2003; Bellamy and Taylor, 1998). Whilst there are some ‘e-enthusiasts valuing
utopian or optimistic views and believing in the almost unlimited potential of new
technologies for making public administration more effective and for reinvigorating
political participation of the citizens through the electronic means, the more balanced
accounts point out difficulties and problems alongside the heralded promises’
(Crabtree, 2002; Steyaert, 2002; Walch, 2002; Matsuura, 2003, cited in Cisar, 2003:
17). On the other hand, according to some ‘pessimistic arguments, the boom of ICTs
may not bring any democratic improvements, i.e. eDemocracy; instead it can lead to
a new version of dictatorship—eTatorship’ (Thompson, 2002, cited in Cisar, 2003:
17). Before highlighting the current debates on this topic, the definitions of key
concepts used in the thesis will be outlined and a theoretical model presented.
1.2 Key Concepts Defined Old Versus New Public Management
The advent of the internet, digital connectivity, the explosion and use of e-commerce
and e-business models in the private sector are pressuring the public sector to rethink
hierarchical, bureaucratic organizational models (Old Public Management).
Customers, citizens and businesses—who are faced every day with innovative e-
business and e-commerce models implemented by the private sector and made
possible by ICT tools and applications—are requiring the same from governmental
organizations. Osborne and Gaebler (1992) referred to citizens as customers for
governments, since governments need to empower rather than serve, to shift from
hierarchy to teamwork and participation, to be mission oriented and customer
focused, and to focus on prevention rather than cure. Governments worldwide are
faced with the challenge of transformation and the need to modernize administrative
14 Accessed 10 March 2005 from: <http://www.flp.org.fj/s031202.htm; http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=7548>.
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practices and management systems (Tapscott, 1996). Recently, the public sector has
begun to recognize the potential opportunities offered by ICT and e-business models
to fit with citizens’ demands, to offer better services to citizens and to increase
efficiency by streamlining internal processes. Tapscott and Caston (1993) argue that
ICT causes a ‘paradigm shift’ introducing ‘the age of network intelligence’,
reinventing businesses, governments and individuals. Paradigm shifts prevail in the
public sector too. The traditional bureaucratic paradigm, characterized by internal
productive efficiency, functional rationality, departmentalization, hierarchical control
and rule-based management (Kaufman, 1977), is being replaced by competitive,
knowledge based economy requirements, such as: flexibility, network organization,
vertical/horizontal integration, innovative entrepreneurship, organization learning,
speed up in service delivery, and a customer driven strategy. These new paradigms
thrust the shift towards the eGovernance paradigm, which emphasizes coordinated
network building, external collaboration and customer services (Ho, 2002).
The new public management (NPM) is a new way of thinking about the public
sector—driven by theoretical frameworks that stem from new institutional economics
and organizational theory. Its purpose is to cut the red tape or, in other words, break
through bureaucracy (Barzelay, 1992). In this context, researchers interested in
organizational aspects have studied many reform projects with a focus on change
management (Schedler and Scharf, 2001). The NPM focuses on performance and
the three Es—economy, efficiency, and effectiveness (Lienert, 2005).
ICT
Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are tools used to produce,
store, process, distribute and exchange information. They include the ‘old’ ICTs of
radio, television and telephone and the ‘new’ ICTs of computers, satellite and
wireless technology and the internet. These different tools are now able to work
together and combine to form the ‘networked world’ which reaches into every corner
of the globe—allowing remote communities to become integrated. There is virtually
no limit to the reach of ICT. That is why it brings people closer and helps in
reaching the unreached. It treats people alike irrespective of social and economic
status, sex, religion and caste or creed (UNDP, 2001; http://www.apdip.net; Harris,
2004). ICT is a combination of two concepts—information and technology. Access
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to information is power. In the case of good governance, information is acquired and
used strategically for public good purposes. And in the case of bad governance, the
same information is used for private gain and for suppression of citizens. Access to
information forms the basis for decision making and if the community is empowered
by providing information and knowledge then this is the most critical factor in
reducing corruption (ADB, 2003).
The role of ICT in governance can be fourfold: a) improving quality of governance
products and services being currently provided; b) providing new governance
services and products; c) enhancing participation of people in choice and provision
of governance products and services; and d) bringing new sections of society under
the governance sphere (including those who are more likely to remain excluded—
namely the poor, the illiterate, indigenous people, the migrants and displaced people)
(UNDP, 2001).
Internet
The internet is a global network connecting millions of computers. More than 100
countries are linked into exchanges of data, news and opinions. Unlike online
services, which are centrally controlled, the internet is decentralized by design. Each
Internet computer, called a host, is independent. Its operators can choose which to
use and which local services to make available to the global Internet community.
Remarkably, this anarchy by design works exceedingly well. There are a variety of
ways to access the internet. It is also possible to gain access through a commercial
Internet Service Provider (ISP). The Internet is not synonymous with World Wide
Web (WWW).15 The WWW is a global network of multimedia internet information
sources’ (O’Brien, 1999).
Connectivity
A computer buzzword that refers to a program or device's ability to link with other
programs and devices. It is the degree to which hardware, software, and databases
can be easily linked together in a telecommunications network (O’Brien, 1999). For
example, a program that can import data from a wide variety of other programs and
can export data in many different formats is said to have good connectivity. On the
15 Accessed 10 September 2005 from: <http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/I/Internet.html>
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other hand, computers that have difficulty linking into a network (many laptop
computers, for example) have poor connectivity.16
Good Governance
‘Governance can be seen as the exercise of economic, political and administrative
authority to manage a community’s affairs at all levels. It comprises the mechanisms,
processes, and institutions through which community members and groups articulate
their interests, exercise their legal rights, meet their obligations and mediate their
differences. The challenge for all societies is to create a system of good governance
that promotes, supports and sustains human development–especially for the
marginalized and voiceless sections of the society’.17 ‘Good governance is amongst
other things participatory, transparent and accountable, with the main emphasis of
reducing corruption’ (Rogers, 2004: 3).
eGovernance
Electronic governance refers to public sector use of the Internet and other digital
devices to deliver services and information. Although personal computers have been
around for several decades, recent advances in networking, video imaging, and
graphics interfacing have allowed governments to develop websites that contain a
variety of online materials. The electronic enabled governance (eGovernance) has
emerged as technology driven methodology to realize economic prosperity leading to
transparency, simpler and quicker access to information, better public participation/
involvement in decision making processes, improved administrative efficiency,
improved public services, higher velocity of business, improved productivity and
exciting business opportunities. eGovernance primarily aims to use the government
wide electronic information infrastructure to simplify service delivery, reduce
duplication, improve level and speed of service to its clients (Citizens, Business,
Employees, Other Government departments,…) at a lower cost through integrated
electronic data management between various departments (Thomas, 2004). In this
16 Accessed 10 September 2005 from:<http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/c/connectivity.html> 17 Hoekman, A. n.d. eGovernance and The Promotion of Transparency in Governance. Regional Workshop on Building eGovernance Capacity in Africa. Accessed 10 December 2004 from: <http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/cafrad/unpan006496.pdf#search='egovernance%20for%20achieving%20goals%20of%20good%20governance>
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study, ICT, eGovernance, digital governance, integrated governance and electronic
governance are used interchangeably.
Digital Economy
The digital economy refers to an economy that is based on digital technologies,
including digital communication networks, computers, and software. The digital
economy is also sometimes called the internet economy, the new economy, or the
Web economy. This means that digital communications technology will replace the
existing analog media just as (digital) compact discs have replaced (analog) vinyl
records. This means that interactive computer technology can be combined with
digital communications networks to provide interactive digital content to anyone
anywhere anytime over a low-cost high-performance network.18
eCommerce (also known as e-commerce)
eCommerce (electronic commerce) is the buying and selling of goods and services
on the internet, especially the world wide web. Electronic commerce is used
interchangeably in the thesis as eCommerce or e-commerce. In practice, this term
and a newer term, eBusiness, are often used interchangeably.19
eBusiness (also known as e-Business)
eBusiness (electronic business) is, in its simplest form, the conduct of business on the
Internet. It is a more generic term than eCommerce because it refers not only to
buying and selling but also to servicing customers and collaborating with business
partners. A starting point is to define eBusiness as ‘interaction with business
partners, where the interaction is enabled by information technology’.20 Another
definition of eBusiness is that it is Business Process Re-engineering (BPR), except
this time, information technology is much more entwined. eBusiness is about
understanding the potential of new technologies in your market and in your supply
chain and then reorienting your business to implement your vision, and
implementing it quickly enough to minimize the threat from competitors if you are
defending your market share, or fast enough to take advantage of the opportunities if 18 Accessed 10 September 2005 from: <http://www.circle4.com/allblack/digiecon.html> 19Accessed 29 September 2005 from: <http://www.mariosalexandrou.com/glossary/ecommerce.asp> 20 Accessed 29 September 2005 from: <http://www.ecommerceprogram.com/ecommerce/Ebusiness-Info.asp>
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you are aggressive about growing market share.21 IBM, in 1997, was one of the first
to use the term when it launched a campaign built around the term. Today, many
corporations are rethinking their businesses in terms of the internet and its
capabilities. Companies are using the web to buy parts and supplies from other
companies, to collaborate on sales promotions, and to do joint research. Exploiting
the convenience, availability, and global reach of the internet, many companies, both
large and small have already discovered how to use the internet successfully.22
eDemocracy (also known as e-Democracy)
e-Democracy represents the use of ICT and strategies by democratic actors within
political and governance processes of local communities, nations and on the
international stage. Democratic actors/sectors include governments, elected officials,
the media, political organizations, and citizen/voters. To many, e-Democracy
suggests greater and more active citizen participation enabled by the internet, mobile
communications, and other technologies in today’s representative democracy as well
as through more participatory or direct forms of citizen involvement in addressing
public challenges. 23 Broadly, electronic democracy (eDemocracy) refers to the
processes and structures that encompass all forms of electronic communication
between government and the citizen. In a narrower perspective, eDemocracy refers
principally to the processes and structures that encompass all forms of electronic
communication between the electorate and the elected (Riley, 2003).
Public Service Delivery
The use of ICT in the provision of public services should be made available where it
is considered that this would be an effective means of
accessibility, usability, and inclusiveness, of public services; strengthening public
services’ responsiveness to user needs; and ensuring equality in public service
provision as a means to fostering social cohesion.
When public authorities provide public information and services through ICT, it
should be clear what information and services are available and how and where these
21Accessed 29 September 2005 from: <http://www.ecommerceprogram.com/ecommerce/Ebusiness-Info.asp> 22Accessed 29 September 2005 from: <http://www.mariosalexandrou.com/glossary/ebusiness.asp> 23 Accessed 29 September 2005 from: <http://www.publicus.net/articles/edemresources.html>
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-services should allow users to self-tailor e-services
d authenticity of information and the
fact that it is up to date, as well as the security of the services, should be ensured;
e of services and the presentation of
service quality and a “seamless” service across multiple service areas and modes of
access, whether via traditional channels or via ICT, should be ensured; �competent
advice for users of e-services, tailored to differing user characteristics, should be
provided (IPI, 2004).
�Teledensity
The most common measure of telecommunication access is teledensity or the number
of main telephone lines per inhabitant (ITU, 2002).
Digital Divide
The digital divide is the disparity in access to technology that exists across certain
demographic groups. The gap between household access to computers and the
internet has dominated the discussion over the digital divide. Technically however,
the digital divide includes disparities in access to other related technologies as well.
Telecommunications access has increasingly entwined itself with educational, social,
financial, and political opportunities. As the nation and the world increasingly go
online, those that already have access to electronic resources are making rapid gains
while leaving the unconnected behind. Herein lies the crux of the current debate.
The ‘digital divide’ is a social/political issue referring to the socio-economic gap
between communities that have access to computers and the internet and those who
do not. The term also refers to gaps that exist between groups regarding their ability
to use ICTs effectively, due to differing levels of literacy and technical skills, as well
as the gap between those groups that have access to quality, useful digital content
and those that do not. The term became popular among concerned parties, such as
scholars, policy makers, and advocacy groups, in the late 1990s. Broadly speaking,
the difference is not necessarily determined by the access to the internet, but any
ICTs and media that different segments of society can use. With regard to the
internet, the access is only one aspect, but the quality of connection and auxiliary
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services, processing speed and other capabilities of the computer used, and other
factors could also be part of the issue, although one does not need even a computer to
connect to the internet. The idea of the digital divide resonates with ‘common sense’
skepticism against claims of the revolutionary power of the internet and the emerging
utopian information society. Some suggest that eGovernance is eliminating power
differentials and realizing a democratic society, and so on. At the same time, some
sceptics point out that not every gap is a problem.24
Social Exclusion
Social exclusion refers to the continued exclusion of groups and individuals as a
result of age, ethnicity, disability and income from using eGovernance. In addition,
as discussed earlier, the likelihood of exclusion from participation with new
technologies increases in relation to educational achievements. The evidence
suggests that whilst excluded communities and individuals are unable or reluctant to
use the technology, their identities and cultures remain invisible (Loader and Keeble,
2004).
�eLiteracy (also known as e-Literacy)
eLiteracy (eLit) refers to the whole range of skills and intellectual abilities needed to
make appropriate use of the new technologies underpinning learning and life in the
modern world. It includes computer literacy, information literacy, media literacy,
thinking skills and learning skills.25 In this study eLiteracy is used with e-Literacy.
eReadiness (also known as e-Readiness)
eReadiness refers to the institutional, technological, legal and human capacity of the
public sector to employ eGovernance or new forms of ICTs (Heeks, 2001, 2003).
Corruption
There is a wealth of literature dedicated to defining the enormously rich term of
corruption. For the purpose of this paper corruption is defined as the ‘use of public
office for private gains’ (Bardhan, 1997, cited in Camerer, 1997). This definition
24Accessed 30 September 2005 from: <http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/0,,sid9_gci214062,00.html;http://www.reed.edu/~gronkep/webofpolitics/projects/digitaldivide/definition.htm; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_divide> 25 Accessed 29 September 2005 from:<http://www.jelit.org/archive/00000025/01/Conference_Reviews.pdf >
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confines itself to public sector corruption. A similar definition was given by Rose-
Ackerman in the Introductory parts.
There are many types of corruption, including rent seeking behaviour, petty
corruption (such as greasing the palm/wheels, bribery, extortion, and kickbacks).
The focus of this thesis is on petty corruption. Petty corruption usually involves
relatively small sums paid to low level officials to ‘grease the wheels’ or cut through
bureaucratic red tape (Quinones, 2000). It can also refer to illicit payments of ‘speed
money’ to government officials to facilitate the timely delivery of goods and services
to which the public is rightfully entitled or illicit payments to government officials to
facilitate access to goods, services, and/or information to which the public is not
entitled, or to deny the public access to goods and services to which it is legally
entitled (ADB, 2005).
Bribery arises where an official accepts money or some other consideration to
engage in a particular course of action or inaction, while extortion is where an
official demands money or some other consideration to engage in a particular course
of action or inaction (Reddy, 2005). Kickbacks refers to the design or selection of
uneconomical projects because of patronage (ADB, 2005).
The next section presents the theoretical model around which this study will revolve.
1.3 Selected Theoretical Models The context of eGovernance in Fiji is appropriate and linked to the theoretical
context of principal–agent theory. Dixit (2003) one of the best known economists
writing on the theory of principal–agent, talks about how severely developing
countries suffer from human capital and limited ICT networks, which escalates the
problems of corruption due to principal–agent relationships, where the burden comes
on the citizens who are ‘unable’ and cannot be instrumental in reducing corruption
through altering the principal–agent relationship.
The core issue that the researcher seeks to raise is that Fiji has ICT policies and
practices in place, but using eGovernance as a tool for reducing corruption in the
public sector has yet to be realized. There is lot of potential in Fiji Islands to harness
ICTs. Therefore, this research seeks to test the hypothesis that eGovernance can
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serve as an antidote to corruption by altering the principal–agent relationship. This
study is to be conducted first, through a survey to gather respondents’ views; and
secondly, through a case study illustrating how this is possible with reference to
using eGovernance for reducing corruption in service delivery by employing
eGovernance models.
Economic analysis of the determinants of corruption has typically drawn upon the
principal–agent theory. The principal–agent framework is, I believe, a very useful
one for thinking about the problems in achieving accountability and transparency in
public sector. It is also very useful for thinking about accountability and
transparency in the wider public sector context, given that in just about every activity
of the public sector—in both its political and bureaucratic dimensions. By
convention those who perform the service are called agents and those engaging an
agent are called principals. Therefore, agents are the public officials delivering the
service while the principal is the citizen transacting with the government official.
The basic conflict in the principal–agent relationship was first described by Adam
Smith in 1776.26 Much of the early work on principal–agent theory focused on the
nature of formal contracts, particularly in insurance markets (e.g., Spence and
Zeckhauser, 1971; Ross, 1973). But extensions to other types of contracts, both
formal and informal, followed rapidly (e.g., Jenson and Meckling, 1976; Harris and
Raviv, 1978). The earliest analyses of the principal–agent problem was carried out
by Mirrlees (1974) and Stiglitz (1974). All these studies focused on the problems of
principal–agent theory in the context of private organizations. Recently, research by
Laffont et al. (2002) and Lane (2003) has shifted this focus and paid attention to the
relevance of the principal–agent framework for understanding key problems in the
public sector.
Cisar (2003), Tangkitvanich (2003) and Mahmood (2004) suggest that if
eGovernance is to curb corruption, then designing such systems needs an appropriate
conceptual framework. In this regard, the critics argue that designing eGovernance
systems to deter corruption requires policy makers and public managers to
26 Adam Smith in his book Wealth of Nations mentions about the principal–agent relationship. See: Smith, A. 1776. The Wealth of Nations. New York cited in Nicholson, W. 2000. Intermediate Microeconomics and Its Applications. 8th edn. Dryden Press, United States of America.
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understand the factors that affect the level of corruption. The work of Rose-
Ackerman (1978, 1994) and Klitgaard (1988, 1995a, 1995b), drawing heavily on this
principal–agent framework is especially pertinent here. Klitgaard and Ackerman
stress three dimensions of institutional structure that they consider most critical in
bearing on the opportunities for corruption: (1) the monopoly power of officials; (2)
the degree of discretion that officials are permitted to exercise; and (3) the degree to
which there are systems of accountability and transparency in an institution.
Professor Klitgaard’s and Rose Ackerman’s corruption framework (principal–agent
model) succinctly summarized in the following equation is suggested as a useful
conceptual tool.
Corruption = Monopoly + Discretion – Transparency
The premise for employing the model is the recognition that corruption occurs when
a public official possesses access to a monopoly, discretion in administering it, and a
lack of transparency. ICTs are altering the principal–agent relationship in the public
sector–citizen interface, most notably through eGovernance. The process of
eGovernance entails transcribing information held by government agencies into
electronic form and then linking disparate databases. The desired goal is streamlined
sharing of information between government agencies to conduct government–to–
government (G2G) transactions, but also to simplify the navigation of government–
to–citizen (G2C) and government–to–business (G2B) transactions. In many
advanced industrialized economies, citizens are debating how ICTs and eGovernance
are actually changing the very nature of democracy itself. The motives for
implementing these technologies in the West may have had more to do with
improving services than curbing corruption per se, due to the fact that corruption in
the developed world is thought to be less prevalent than in the developing world.
Nonetheless, the potential for eGovernance to reduce corruption in the developing
world is substantial (Mahmood, 2004). The eGovernance systems are being
designed to increase competition, reduce discretionary power, and promote
transparency and accountability. A pure eGovernance solution removes discretion
from the equation of corruption by dis-intermediating services and allowing citizens
to conduct transactions themselves. It is envisaged that in a setting with many
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individuals and many witnesses, corruption becomes much more difficult if not
impossible to commit (Cisar, 2003; Tangkitvanich, 2003; Mahmood, 2004).
Models of digital governance are still evolving in developing countries and
continuously improvising to harness fully the potential of knowledge networks. A
few generic models, however, have shaped up which are finding greater recognition
and are being replicated. These models are based on the inherent characteristics of
ICT, which are: enabling equal access to information to anyone who is a part of the
digital network and de-concentration of information across the entire digital network.
In simpler terms, information does not reside at any one particular node in the digital
governance models but flows equally across all the nodes—a fundamental change
from the more common hierarchical information flow model that leads to unequal
distribution of information and hence skewed power relations. These models of
governance are fundamentally different from those popular in the developed
countries due to the differences in the basic conditions, and perspectives and
expectations from good governance. The five generic models of digital governance
in developing countries that have been identified are: broadcasting/wider-
dissemination model, critical flow model, comparative analysis model, mobilisation
and lobbying model and interactive service model.27 Out of these five models only
the interactive service model will be used to illustrate the potential of eGovernance in
corruption deterrence. The justification for selecting this model is that the public
sector deals with service delivery. Moreover, this model has been successfully
applied in the context of developing countries and has deterred corruption. Therefore
it will be relevant to view successful eGovernance models of developing countries
and document successful cases (and see what information systems were built and
how they were built) and analyze the relevance of these models in the context of Fiji.
Interactive Service Model: Government–Consumer–Government: The
interactive service model is a consolidation of the earlier presented digital
governance models and opens up avenues for direct participation of individuals in
the governance processes. Fundamentally, ICTs have the potential to bring in every
27 Accessed 10 June 2005 from: <http://www.glowingweb.com/egov/default.htm;http://216.197.119.113/artman/publish/generic-models.shtml>
- 20 -
individual in a digital network and enable interactive (two-way) flow of information
amongst them. The potential of ICT for governance is fully leveraged in this model
and can lead to greater objectivity and transparency in decision-making processes.
Also information dissemination of critical value to the targeted audience (such as the
media, opposition parties) or into the wider public domain through the use of ICT
and convergent media is possible. This model requires the foresight to understand
the "use value" of a particular information set, how to obtain such information, how
it could be used strategically, and finally targeting it to users to whom the availability
of such information would make a difference. The strength of this model is that ICT
makes the concept of 'distance' and 'time' redundant when information is hosted on a
digital network, and this could be used advantageously—by instantly transferring the
critical information to its strategic user group located anywhere or by making it
freely available in the wider public domain.
Based on the theoretical understanding of how eGovernance interacts with principal–
agent framework to deter corruption, this study seeks to test the model linking the
three variables: eGovernance, principal–agent and corruption reduction. Therefore,
figure 1.1 presents the hypothesized model:
Figure 1.1: Hypothesized Model
In the diagram the unbroken line depicts a direct relationship: by increasing
information to service users, the use of eGovernance cuts corruption directly. The
broken lines indicate indirect relationships: by cutting information asymmetry that
agents can exploit, the use of eGovernance cuts corruption. Instead of dealing with
principals who have little knowledge, service delivery agents are either bypassed by
principals using eGovernance based processes to help themselves or required to deal
with principals empowered by improved knowledge of service delivery processes.
eGovernance corruption reduction a
b c principal–agent
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A number of critics mention that to maximize the potential benefits from
eGovernance applications, transparency needs to be consciously built into the public
service delivery system beginning from the design and planning phase. In some
cases, the objectives to promote greater transparency and prevent corruption need to
be highlighted and prioritized. This is because an eGovernance service can be used to
promote multiple objectives, e.g., efficiency, small business promotion, cost saving,
labour reduction and so on. In some circumstances, these objectives may not be
conflicting. With limited resources, however, multiple objectives may lead to lack of
focus. In such a situation, the goal to promote transparency and reduce corruption
can be lost (Cisar, 2003; Mahmood, 2004; Tangkitvanich, 2003).
Other optimistic views presented by Colby (2001), Chaurasia (2003), Budhiraj
(2003) and Millard (2004) suggest that ICTs have a distinct advantage over other
conventional communication and information management systems in several
important respects. ICTs provide greater accessibility, there is facility for wider
multi-communication and dissemination of information, automatic record keeping
features and generally better knowledge management and information sharing.
These characteristics have the ability to transform the way public service delivery is
conducted and thus improve the relationship between the government and citizens.
The new possibilities offered by harnessing ICTs to public administration provide a
powerful tool to combat corruption. The critics stress that if the right procedures are
in place, ICTs have the ability to make transactions, whether financial or
administrative, traceable and open to challenge. There can no longer be any excuse
for not publishing the rules and criteria governing decisions and entitlements. Those
who are responsible for particular decisions or activities can be readily identified,
and by providing enhanced accounting, monitoring and auditing systems, they ensure
that public finances are fully open to senior managerial and external scrutiny.
Moreover, the power of ICTs as a vehicle of communication means that citizens can
be more fully involved in all aspects of government, including policy-making, thus
reinforcing the creation of a culture of trust and mutual interest. Yisheng (2002) says
that it is this honesty and integrity that eGovernance provides. He further mentions
that eGovernance helps prevent corruption and uphold integrity in public
administration, enhances government efficiency and ensures better functioning of
government in public administration, fits with the reform of the administrative
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system, promotes the transformation of government function, democracy and rule of
law.
This is the standpoint of my thesis which I intend to explore in Fiji. In order to
achieve the ultimate goal of this research, namely to recommend methods for curbing
public-sector corruption with the help of eGovernance, it is necessary to differentiate
between the different types of corruption. There are various types of corruption and
not all of them can be successfully fought against with the help of ICTs/eGovernance.
The first group of corrupt practices is formed by petty bureaucratic corruption (i.e.
low-level administrative corruption). The second group of corrupt activities consists
of the strategies aimed at self-serving asset stripping by state officials (state capture).
And the third group of corrupt activities is formed by great political corruption
(grand corruption) (Shah and Schacter, 2004). This typology of the levels of
corruption follows Shah and Schacter (2004: 2), who explain that petty
administrative or bureaucratic corruption ‘involves corrupt acts and isolated
transactions by individual public officials who abuse their office, for example, by
demanding bribes and kickbacks, diverting public funds, or awarding favors in return
for personal considerations’. The authors define state capture as ‘collusion by
private actors with public officials or politicians for their mutual, private benefit, that
is, the private sector “captures” the state legislative, executive, and judicial apparatus
for its own purposes’ (ibid.). State capture coexists with the conventional (and
opposite) view of corruption, in which ‘public officials extort or otherwise exploit
the private sector for private ends’ (ibid.). The last level of corruption is grand
corruption. This is explained by Shah and Schacter (2004: 2) as ‘the theft or misuse
of vast amounts of public resources by state officials—usually members of, or
associated with, the political or administrative elite’.
If an anticorruption strategy is to be viable then one needs to define all the
dimensions of the anticorruption struggle and the role eGovernance can play in it.
Cisar (2003: 2) argues that:
In order to fight corruption one needs to focus on three distinctive aspects − (1) corruption opportunities; (2) corruption incentives, i.e. salaries; and (3) the likelihood of detection and punishment of corrupt activities, i.e. policing. A successful anticorruption strategy should incorporate all the three
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dimensions. Thus, it has to (1) specify methods for minimizing corruption opportunities via increased transparency; (2) diminish corruption incentives through putting in place a stable system of civil service, including clearly defined career prospects and a system of remuneration, and (3) increase the probability of detection of corrupt activities, i.e. develop concrete control mechanisms.
Accordingly this research focuses on two aspects of the anticorruption effort—on
minimizing corruption opportunities within the bureaucracy and maximizing the
probability of detection of corruption through control mechanisms. It will also
recommend how eGovernance can promote increased transparency.
All types of petty corruption can be powerfully diminished through the increased
transparency achieved by using modern electronic technology. Generally, the
employment of the Internet in the administrative proceedings in all fields of public
administration brings more transparency; therefore, it minimizes the opportunities for
public officials to monopolize access to relevant information and to extract bribes
from their clients. Literature indicates the cases of a number of Latin American and
Indian states where petty corruption was reduced by employing eGovernance
(Bhatnagar, 2003, 2005; Sarah, 2003). The most famous and award winning
example is of the ‘OPEN’ 28 (Online Procedures Enhancement) system in Seoul,
Korea. Research conducted by Kang (2001), Bhatnagar (2003, 2005) and Cho and
Choi (2004) talks much about this system. Further, the employment of ICTs can also
powerfully foster the anticorruption struggle against self-serving asset stripping by
state officials (Cisar, 2003; Yum, 2003, 2005; Dorotinsky, 2003, 2005; Talero, 2005).
Last but not the least, the employment of ICTs may also potentially play an
important role in preventing some types of grand political corruption (Prahalad,
2005; Jain and Ramani, 2005; Dash, 2005). ICTs can not only directly help curb
public-sector corruption by increasing the transparency of the political and
administrative systems, but can also facilitate the activities and cooperation of the
actors focused on fighting corruption. As corruption flourishes when there is a
monopoly of power (usually on the side of state bureaucrats), discretion in
administering it and lack of accountability, it is vital that actors other than the
government officials get involved in the anticorruption campaign. Therefore, the
28 For more details on this system see ‘detailed description of the OPEN system’ Available at: <http://english.metro.seoul.kr/government/policies/anti/civilapplications/>
- 24 -
role of a vibrant civil society will be vital in keeping the engine of the anticorruption
struggle going. In this respect, eGovernance can enhance the involvement of various
social actors so as to (1) demonopolize the anticorruption effort; and (2) obtain
information about the activities of other actors. This can then increase the
transparency of the whole system without concentrating the power of control in the
hands of state bureaucracy. This strategy fully utilizes the potential of the
ICTs/eGovernance. It aims at a decentralized model of corruption control and
therefore, preempts the mismanagement of information technology by
asymmetrically empowered actors such as the state or local bureaucrats (Mahmood,
2004; Cisar, 2003).
There are various opinions concerning the potential of eGovernance for reducing
corruption in public service delivery. As was mentioned in Sub-section 1.1 there are
optimists on one hand, who view that ICTs if successfully applied, would help
societies to put a stop to all corrupt exchanges. These optimists believe that the
unpredictably rapid development of the Internet and other technological devices will
make both the public-sector officials and the executives more accountable to the
citizens (Crabtree, 2002; Steyaert, 2002; Walch, 2002; Matsuura, 2003; Ward, 1996).
However, the pessimistic arguments point out that although the ‘new technological
applications have a genuine transformative potential in the field of curbing
corruption, their use must be precisely specified and accompanied by additional
institutional measures if it is to result in a tangible inhibition of corrupt activities’
(Heeks, 1998, 1999a, cited in Cisar, 2003: 17–18).
There is an inherent relationship between an effective role of eGovernance and
reduced corruption in the public sector. In most societies eGovernance has not been
taken on board as state policies to combat corruption in public offices. The case in
Fiji is no different. In this study the relationship between these two, that is,
eGovernance and reduced corruption, is examined with the help of theoretical
models such as the principal–agent model and interactive service delivery model.
The next section presents current debates on the topic.
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1.4 Current Debates Around eGovernance The conceptual debate of ‘eGovernance’ may evolve round the challenges of its
implementation as per its objectives. eGovernance where it refers to ‘more engaged
and interactive citizenry’ (Rogers, 2002: 10), creates a space for argument. What
does it mean when it comes to practice? Government or legislative bodies, usually
being resistant to ‘change’, can find it difficult to lead the transition. The
commitment, attitudinal changes or the leadership that it requires, foster a debate as
to how government can handle this. The major obstacle governments will have to
solve in order to meet this new challenge will be to develop administrative means
and a sufficient back office, consisting of resources, funding, and personnel, to
achieve this (Riley, 2004). Lack of political commitment and support from major
stakeholders can lead to failure of eGovernance even if other success factors are
present (Heeks, 2001a, 2001b, 2004).
If eGovernance refers to greater engagement of citizens through digital means, then
‘digital divide’ itself is an important area of concern. Causes of ‘digital divide’ are
not technical but socio-economic. Therefore, there are questions of access,
connectivity, education, skill, affordability etc. that remain as underlying basics to
eGovernance. UN World Public Sector Report 2003 ‘eGovernance at the
Crossroads’ suggests three prerequisites to eGovernance: a minimum threshold level
of technological infrastructure, human capital and e-connectivity for all. The report
also suggests that the primary challenge of eGovernance therefore, is how to
accomplish this.29
Another important consideration is that eGovernance is a process not a decisive end
to the evolution of its meaning. It also does not imply any standard trajectory of
progression. Therefore countries need to find their own best way and need to be in a
process of ‘dialogue, learning, capacity building and facilitation’ (Heeks, 2001a),
which is a ‘learning by doing’ approach.
29 Report of the Ad Hoc Expert Group Meeting on E-Governance and Changes in Administrative Structures and Processes; The United Nations 2003 World Public Sector Report (WPSR); July 2004. Accessed 10 December 2004 from: <http://www.worldbank.org/>
- 26 -
On the other hand, eGovernance that lays too much of its basis on ICT often misses
the point of governance in reality. As Heeks indicates, ‘eGovernance’ may be
unhelpful by suggesting, wrongly, that delivery of ICTs is an end in itself. It may be
more appropriate to talk of ‘iGovernance’ (integrated governance or, perhaps,
intelligent governance) that places governance objectives in the driving seat, with
ICTs seen as one part of the means to deliver those objectives alongside people,
processes and information’ (Heeks, 2003). Many argue that the mission of
eGovernance is to bring national, regional and local administration closer to the
common people for offering efficient and effective services (Heeks, 2001a, 2003;
Riley, 2003). That means government delivers services to the citizens, but there is
less focus on how citizens will be engaged to make decisions in the democratic
process. eGovernance as per its concept thinks to make the interaction both ways and
promises for wider interaction with citizens. But, when and how it would be done
remains uncertain in the literature of eGovernance. In reality, government’s focus is
mostly on electronic delivery of services and may avoid the contentious issues of
good governance [such as, democracy, participation, equality etc.] (Tangitvanich,
2003). Some also think that the development of eGovernance will inevitably lead to
e-democracy. Steven Clift in his article ‘eGovernment and Democracy:
Representation and Citizen Engagement In the Information Age’ says that as
government delivers more services online there will be a dramatic shift in the
willingness of citizens to use the various tools of e-democracy (Clift, n.d., cited in
Riley, 2003). But simply because government engages in online activities with the
citizens does not necessarily mean that mechanism for e-democracy will follow
(Riley, 2003). There are many factors involved to it. The Public Management
(PUMA) Group of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
(OECD) has articulated three main components required for online transactions
between government and the citizen: ‘information, active participation and
consultation’ (Riley, 2003).
The ‘eBusiness’ or ‘market’ dimension of eGovernance has a clear distinction to
what the ‘political–economic’ dimension of eGovernance is. The World Bank, for
example, calls the governments ‘to create the legal and institutional framework for
transparency, predictability and competence and the management of economic
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development’.30 The argument is that the market being the major equilibrium, will
eventually rectify the concerns of unequal distribution; the government’s role is to
provide that level playing field in the market by liberalizing the economic and
institutional framework. Examples are pointed to the diffusion of previous electronic
media (such as radio, television etc.) and other forms of infrastructure, such as
electricity distribution, sewage treatment, public education, telephone services, etc.
that benefited the entire society. On the other hand, the ‘political–economy’
dimension of eGovernance relates the issue with sustainable human development so
that development cannot be a by-product or a trickling down of economic
achievements only. Sound governance means a ‘framework of public management
based on the rule of law, a fair and efficient system of justice, and broad popular
involvement in the process of governing and being governed’ (UNDP, 1995). It is a
totalistic view and integrates organizational structures and activities of government,
the parliament, the judiciary and the institutions, organizations and individuals that
comprise civil society, the private sector and the ways in which their actions
influence the public policy for public good (UNDP, 2004).
1.5 Organization of the Thesis This thesis is organized in six chapters. The first chapter has introduced the subject matter, presented key definitions and
concepts and outlined the theoretical model. The current debates on eGovernance
were discussed and the structure of the thesis was outlined.
The global, regional and national overview of eGovernance and corruption reduction
in public service delivery and the related literature review is discussed in Chapter 2.
The extensive discussion is warranted in light of limited studies in Fiji. In addition,
the problem statement, aims/objectives, hypothesis and specific research questions
are outlined.
30 Report of the Ad Hoc Expert Group Meeting on eGovernance and Changes in Administrative Structures and Processes; The United Nations 2003 World Public Sector Report (WPSR); July 2004. Accessed 10 December 2004 from: <http://www.worldbank.org/>
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Chapter three provides the details of research methodology. It justifies the
methodological issues and methods of research that are used for this study.
Additionally it explains the collection and analysis of research data as well as
acknowledging the research limitations.
Chapter four presents the findings from the questionnaire survey. This section shows
the results of the hypotheses in the study and addresses core research questions. It
further highlights the issues, challenges and barriers for employing eGovernance in
the context of Fiji and pinpoints how these barriers can be overcome.
Chapter five details the case study of the Ministry of Agriculture, Extension Services.
It explains the relationship between agents (public officials) and principals (citizens)
and how agents exercise their monopoly of power and discretion to deny and delay
services to principals. Specifically, the chapter highlights the principal–agent
problems of corruption, and with reference to eGovernance, how corruption can be
reduced.
Chapter six begins with a brief outline of each chapter. The chapter then draws
attention to the survey results and analysis, and brings to the forefront the findings
from the case study. It exposes the issues, challenges and barriers in employing
eGovernance in Fiji. It summarizes the major findings from the quantitative and
qualitative analyses in line with the objectives, hypotheses and research questions of
this study. Next it puts forward some key recommendations. Following the
recommendations, a future research agenda is presented.
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Chapter 2
Literature Review
2.1 Introduction This chapter reviews the literature on eGovernance from the global and regional
perspective and outlines the gaps in research. Then the second section presents the
research problem, justification for research and outlines the objectives, hypotheses
and research questions.
2.2 Overview: eGovernance for Reducing Corruption in Public
Service Delivery A number of empirical studies have been conducted that highlight the potential of
eGovernance as an antidote to corruption, with resulting impacts on poverty. Studies
by Mahmood (2004), Tangkitvanich (2003), Cisar (2003), Bhatnagar (2003; 2005),
Prahalad (2005), Sarah (2003), Bassanini (2003), Bowankar (2004), Kudo (2004),
Cho and Choi (2004), Kang (2001) Ahmed (2004), Panda et al. (2005), Kalia (2005),
Raghuveer (2005), Jain and Ramani (2005), Fuliya and Bansal (2005), Dash (2005),
Yum (2003, 2005), Talero (2005) and Dorotinsky (2005) demonstrate the impact of
ICTs/eGovernance in minimizing corruption in service delivery and enhancing
transparency and accountability.
For example, Bhatnagar’s survey (2003) documents the cases from Asian and Latin
American countries that have implemented eGovernance, out of which the cases in
Chile, India, Brazil and South Korea have been replicated on a wider scale.
Bhatnagar documents case studies of eGovernance application from different
developing countries according to types of applications and discusses the resulting
benefits. A few examples have shown that ICT use in delivery of services to the
citizens can significantly improve services and reduce corruption. Most citizens
have limited or inadequate access to basic services such as health, education, water,
sanitation, electricity, credit, etc. The largest number of applications have been built
for service delivery to citizens. A number of states in India and countries in Latin
America have implemented on-line delivery systems for municipal licences,
transport permits, property registration and tax collection. Citizens have benefited
from reduced delays, availability of many services under one roof, avoiding frequent
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visits to government departments, and reduced corruption. Because information
(rules and procedures) is published online, transparency has increased. Bhatnagar
conducted an ethnographic study to measure the impact of the projects on corruption.
This revealed reduced levels of corruption by 60 per cent and improved quality of
life of respondents. Similarly, in a number of Latin American countries where
corruption has been a key public issue, a number of eGovernance projects had been
deployed. eGovernance had a direct impact on 1) reducing the number of
intermediaries that citizens needed to interact with in order to get a government
service, 2) improving government ability to monitor transactions and 3) disclosing
information about government processes and public budget spending to citizens.31
Increasingly, governments would like to use eGovernance as a tool to enhance
transparency and reduce corruption, although this goal is sometimes not stated
publicly as it may create resistance within the civil service.
Bhatnagar’s (2003, 2005) studies have highlighted a critical dimension of
eGovernance and corruption. Both his studies confirm reduction of corruption in
Latin American countries and Indian states. Bhatnagar further outlines that
ICTs/eGovernance helps in that it: (1) introduces transparency in data,
decisions/actions, rules, procedures and performance of government agencies; (2)
automates processes and leads to less discretion and delay; (3) serves as an entry
point for simplification of rules and reengineering; (4) makes decisions traceable by
tracking actions; (5) builds accountability, allowing greater access to information
through web publishing by enhancing the role of civil society; (6) provides
documentation to citizens for follow up; (7) introduces competition amongst delivery
channels by providing standardized documentation of comments/objections leading
to effective supervision through comparative indicators; (8) centralizes and integrates
data for better audit and analysis; and (9) enables unbiased sampling for audit
purposes. Bhatnagar’s survey confirms several key outcomes: (i) Automation and
process reform have led to reduced delays, discretionary power, and mistakes and
face to face contact have been minimized; (ii) Management information systems
(MIS) and their use by supervisors and auditors have helped to detect corruption,
enhance accountability, and improve processes; (iii) Sharing information with the 31 Accessed 10 June 2005 from: <http://www1.worldbank.org/publicsector/egov/open_cs.htm; http://www1.worldbank.org/publicsector/egov/cristal_cs.htm in Bhatnagar(2003>
- 31 -
public has built transparency and trust, supported the complaint process, enabled
tracking, enhanced accountability, and involved civil society; (iv) Handling
complaints by using standard monitoring systems has overall increased trust and
confidence in public agencies. All in all citizens (principals) no longer have to pay
bribes to government agencies (agents) because the chances for exposure of
manipulation for exchange of bribe and corruption are high and overall, results in
greater civic engagement and creates disincentives for corruption, leading to good
governance.
Sarah (2003) has assessed 20 eGovernance projects in India, and the research
confirms that eGovernance leads to greater responsiveness, transparency and
accountability, improved service delivery and overall reduced corruption—all signs
of good governance. In reviewing the cases of Mexico, Chile and the Philippines,
the author says eGovernance led to greater empowerment.
Bowankar’s (2004) investigation in India shows that eGovernance led to increased
levels of transparency and greater public participation and trust.
Bassanini (2003) study also shows positive returns with eGovernance. In this Italian
case study the cost of public employment was reduced from 12.6 per cent of GDP
(1990) to 10.5 per cent of GDP in 2001. eGovernance contributed to the dramatic
cut of the public deficit (from 11.1 per cent of GDP in 1990 to 0.6 per cent in 2000)
and to the decrease of public debt from 12.3 per cent of GDP in 1995 to 16.7 per cent
in 2002. It further reduced red tape and overall, about 200 types of administrative
authorizations were abolished. One hundred per cent of tax returns (about 33
millilitre (s) per year) were filed and reviewed electronically and it introduced
market competition for the telecommunication sector. As part of this study, a
customer satisfaction survey was conducted by Bassanini and the results showed an
increase in customer satisfaction from 38 per cent in 1996 to 59 per cent in 2001.
The work of Cho and Choi (2004) is based on the Seoul Metropolitan Government
reform measure to combat corruption, called the “OPEN” system, an acronym for the
“Online Procedures Enhancement” for civil applications that went into operation in
April 1999. The OPEN system is a Web-based internet service to transact civil
applications for permits, registrations, procurements, contracts, and approvals
- 32 -
submitted online by citizens. It places transparency and accountability in the core of
the management system of civil applications by providing open access for anybody,
anytime, and anywhere to file applications and monitor the review and approval
processes on real time online until the decision on the applications is finalized
according to the timetable set by the officials in charge. The citizens in Seoul
accepted the OPEN system instantly and the users of the service and visitors to the
site have grown rapidly. More importantly, both the citizens who used the system
and the city officials who were involved in managing the system tended to have
favourable opinions on its corruption control effect as attested by the survey findings
of Cho and Choi. The OPEN system has won praises from international and national
anti-corruption organizations. In an opinion poll conducted by Cho and Choi, 84.3
per cent of the respondents felt that the OPEN system contributed to transparency in
the city administration and 72.3 per cent replied that they are satisfied with the
administrative handling by public officials. At the invitation of Transparency
International, the OPEN system was introduced at the 9th International Anti-
Corruption Conference, 10–15 October 1999 in Durban, South Africa, as the best
practice for detecting corruption and has won much acclaim. Furthermore, Choi
(2004) cited in Klazar et al. (2005) tested the hypothesis that the greater the degree of
eGovernance, the lower the level of corruption in the country. His survey findings
confirm data showing that the level of eGovernance has a greater impact on
corruption than any other variable in his study. The United Nations, OECD, and
World Bank have all recognized the merits of the OPEN system. The system has
been adopted by all branches of local government in Korea and is being introduced
to many units of the national government (Kang, 2001). The OPEN system is an
eGovernance innovation with a rich potential for diffusing corruption.
Mahmood (2004) in his study has shown that eGovernance has the potential to fight
corruption but has explored this by using three elements identified by Heeks (1999)
which are (1) a sense of crisis, (2) a renewed ideology, and (3) the political will or
power to carry out reform and incorporated his own variable of regime type. Sense
of crisis is explained by Mahmood as describing the adversity states face today from
the competition for investment and central government financing: now “so many
states find themselves in an acute financial crisis and are competing for their limited
resources of the Centre” (Mahmood, 2004: 359). The author defines renewed
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ideology as reinventing politics to incorporate the good governance agenda. The
variable, regime type signifies whether the state is a liberal democracy, a minimal
democracy, an authoritarian regime or an interrupted regime. Mahmood’s
proposition on the role of eGovernance and its accessibility are satisfied in the case
of Andra Pradesh. The assessments are that the time and money needed to complete
government transactions have been down substantially and reduced the scope for
corruption (Foreign Desk, 1999; Dugger, 1999; Bradesher, 2002; Basu, 2000;
Levander, 2000; Manor, Forthcoming; Geddes, 1991, cited in Mahmood, 2004).
Ahmed’s (2004) work, on the other hand, is based on the case of Bangladesh. In this
case study he comments that accountability, transparency, decentralization,
administrative reform, and satisfaction of public service by its clients are key
problem areas in the present governance system in Bangladesh. He conducts
research on eGovernance and explores the potential role of ICT to bring about a
radical change to improve the situation. Ahmed’s (2004) findings are similar to that
of Prahalad (2005) in that the respective authors agree that the model of eGovernance
if it is to serve as an antidote to corruption has to be one that is citizen-centric, in
which a proper needs identification is done and government delivers services
accordingly. The government in delivering such services will have to ensure that the
whole model of eGovernance is changed and integrated with businesses and civil
society. Prahalad (2005) says that in this way transaction governance capacity can
be created-transaction governance capacity refers to the state’s role in empowering
its citizens, so that they no longer face information poverty, and are able to
participate and conduct transactions themselves, resulting in less queuing and
reduced agency problems.
A study conducted by Panda et al. (2005) on the land acquisition system in India
highlights the problem in acquiring land. It shows that it is a very time–taking task
for the requisitioning party and the losers (in this case, the owners of the land) are
harassed due to delay in getting their compensations. As a result, a lot of issues and
chances of corruption emerge. He shows that use of ICTs/eGovernance can reduce
the delays and curb corruption by making it easier for land losers to get their
payments on time. In this case study Panda et al. (2005) identified the problems with
the existing system. Applications take 330 days and in many cases, years. Secondly,
- 34 -
this delayed activity creates many problems. For instance sometimes to speed up the
process, sometimes the party (registration officer) demands bribes at different levels
of processing. In most of the cases, the land owners (who will lose the land for the
project) are harassed by the government officials and they also pay bribes to get their
compensation. The poor, illiterate and tribal people are exploited more due to lack of
knowledge and inadequate provision of proper information from the government side.
They do not get clear information about the project as well as about their
compensation. So, in many cases, the middle man takes hefty amounts from them,
giving false assurances of award payment, rehabilitation to the destitutes and the
chances of winning jobs in the new project. The information relating to the objective
of the project, its effect on the environment, its effect to the society etc. are not
transparent to the public. Above all, government also faces a lot of problems in
monitoring due to lack of correct information at the right time. He illustrates how
ICTs/eGovernance can be built for the land acquisition system to overcome the
problems, and illustrates the cost and benefits.
According to Kalia (2005), experience across the globe has shown that ICT is one of
the areas where the public private partnership (PPP) model can be employed
successfully. The success of the PPP model depends upon arriving at the right mix of
public sector accountability with private sector efficiency. The sharing of the risk
responsibility is also significant. The success of the PPP model has been illustrated
with the help of a case study of e-seva, which is working very successfully in Andhra
Pradesh of India. In case of e-seva (earlier known as the TWINS project) after the
successful implementation of the pilot, private sector partners were involved to give
citizen-centric services. Government supported the system with physical
infrastructure and acted as the regulator. This project is running quite efficiently and
has won the confidence of citizens and has made government more creditable,
responsive, efficient and transparent. The success of this model shows that the best
way of overcoming corruption is to have PPP. This PPP model has also been
illustrated by Prahalad (2005) in his book titled ‘Fortune At The Bottom of The
Pyramid’ in which he shows how eGovernance can curb corruption. Similar results
are highlighted by Raghuveer (2005), Jain and Ramani (2005) and Dash (2005).
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Another survey was conducted by Fuliya and Bansal (2005) in India. According to
Fuliya and Bansal (2005) providing a wide spectrum of citizen friendly services at a
single place will save citizens the trouble of running around various
offices/departments at block, tehsil, sub-divisional and district level. The project
‘Nai-Disha ekal Sewa Kendra’ (NDESK) is an effort towards creating a citizen
services network, a way to take the governance to the citizens and hence make it
available even at the grass-root level. Nai-Disha is an IT driven electronic interface
between the government and citizens. Initially, 22 information services were
introduced. To take the lead, NDESK was started on a pilot basis at a district
secretariat, Kaithal, on 1st November 2002 to provide transactional services. The
findings confirm the improvement in service delivery and elimination of corruption
and middlemen from the process and all in all the confidence of the citizens has
increased. The project has been found to be self-sustainable and has already
recovered the investment made.
In the International Anti Corruption Conference (IACC) in Seoul, held on 26th May,
2003, Yum Jae-Hyun, Director General, Korea Public Procurement Service, made a
presentation on ‘Enhancing Public Procurement Transparency through ICT’. Yum
also delivered a similar presentation at the 11th Anti-Corruption Conference on
‘Enhancing Transparency through Government eProcurement System’. In these
presentations Yum (2003, 2005) introduced a Korean electronic procurement system
(GePS–eGovernance application in Procurement), which recently received a Public
Sector Innovation Award from the United Nations. His presentation highlights that
potential corruption factors (e.g. frequent relationships between procurement
officials and the staff of private companies, which caused absurdity in procurement
in the past) were significantly reduced through eGovernance in procurement.
In a similar presentation made by Talero (2005) and Dorotinsky (2005) at the Anti
Corruption Thematic Group One Day Clinic on Building ICT Applications for
Combating Administrative Corruption held on 21st April, 2005, the presenters
highlighted how eProcurement (eGovernance application in Procurement), has
shown some impact on corruption amongst other benefits to the government and the
suppliers. Talero is a senior consultant on eGovernance and Dorotinsky is a lead
public sector specialist. Talero’s presentation ‘Reducing Corruption through
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Electronic Procurement’ highlighted that amongst Government departments and
agencies, procurement agencies are perceived to be high on the corruption index in
many countries. Procurement agencies touch a wide spectrum of business and are
therefore a key target for reform. In their presentations, they illustrated how
eProcurement has shown some impact on corruption, amongst other benefits to the
government and the suppliers. He further illustrated how eProcurement is being used
in Chile and said that eProcurement helps reduce corruption by illuminating the
playing field, facilitating entry, standardizing communications, keeping score,
levelling the playing field and enforcing the rules. Talero talked about the eGP32
system that was mentioned by Yum (2003, 2005). His analysis is that the eGP
system increases GDP by over 8 per cent and reduces transaction costs by 10–20 per
cent. Amongst the other benefits are reduced corruption, greater transparency,
efficiency and economic benefits, and above all, the synergy that emerges. Amongst
the key points to remember, Talero says political leadership and policy reform are
critical, success is not possible without culture change, gradual development is
possible and desírable, a modest start yields large transparency benefits, overall
impact can be major and every country case is different.
On the other hand, Dorotinsky (2003, 2005) in a presentation titled ‘Technology and
corruption’ showed how a large number of Financial management information
systems (FMIS) have been designed with varying impact on transparency and
corruption. As examples he cited cases from Canada (an advertising scandal),
Ukraine (tax reform) and Turkey (customs).
According to Chand (2005), a senior public sector specialist with the World Bank,
addressing the root causes, not just the symptoms of corruption, is critical. Reducing
corruption requires comprehensive, long-term approaches that influence systemic
problems. One-off approaches may be useful to build a feeling of short-term success
but are often not sustainable. ICT is seen as a quick fix but its impact does not
sustain unless it is used as a part of a comprehensive strategy to tackle administrative
corruption. Chand discussed a multi pronged strategy adopted by Karnataka that
covered the adoption of ICT (an extensive eGovernance program) for service
32 eGP is also known as eGPS already explained which refers to the application of electronic governance to procurement.
- 37 -
delivery, strengthening of the anti corruption agency, and other measures to enhance
transparency in decision making. Chand’s study has drawn lessons for client
countries and lists amongst the things that explain success of eGovernance in
combating corruption are political champions, departmental capacity and drivers, and
process re-engineering, along with computerization.
After these studies and perspectives have been reviewed, the global scenario of
eGovernance is presented.
2.3 Global Scenario Online service delivery has never been higher on the political agenda than it is today.
From top eGovernance nations such as the United Kingdom, the United States,
Singapore, and Canada to developing nations such as the Philippines, Chile, Brazil,
and India, governments are talking about the significant benefits that can be realized
by employing eGovernance for service delivery (West, 2004). Governments
understand that the ICT revolution is causing a paradigm shift in the public sector.
Tapscott and Caston (1993) cited in Ndou (2004: 2) argue that ‘ICT causes a
paradigm shift introducing the age of network intelligence’. Kaufman (1977) cited in
Ndou (2004: 2) explains that the ‘traditional bureaucratic paradigm, characterized by
internal productive efficiency, functional rationality, departmentalization,
hierarchical control and rule-based management, is being replaced by competitive,
knowledge-based economy requirements, such as: flexibility, network organization,
vertical/horizontal integration, innovative entrepreneurship, organization learning,
speed up in service delivery, and a customer driven strategy’, as a result of which
many developed nations of the world are taking the lead in achieving the benefits of
eGovernance.
Realizing this potential, quite a few countries have initiated innovative eGovernance
programmes. For instance, the Government of Sweden has established a one-stop
shop for all Swedish higher education opportunities, 33 and has an on-line job
vacancies portal comprising six labour market databases that are steadily growing in
scope and use. 34 Similarly the Government of the United Kingdom has been
33 Accessed 10 December 2004 from: <http://www.studera.nu/english/index.shtml> 34 Accessed 10 December 2004 from: < http://platsbanken.ams.se/>
- 38 -
providing up-to-date, cross-referenced health and social care information through the
Internet to all in the country since 2003. With simple on-line access both patients and
doctors can access reference information on a variety of diseases, conditions and
treatments.35 Also countries such as Denmark and Canada have service delivery
portals. 36 Some developing countries, too, have initiated highly innovative
eGovernance programmes that are cost effective and vastly enhance the delivery of
social services. For example the literature mentions at least 20 Indian states that
have successfully deployed eGovernance for service delivery, while a number of
Latin American and Asian countries such as Chile, Brazil, the Philippines, Argentina
and Mexico have achieved similar results.37 Research by West (2004) illustrates how
tourists can book hotels through the government websites of many Caribbean and
Pacific Island Countries. West’s (2004) study highlights that in Australia, citizens
can register government complaints through agency websites and explains how
nations such as Bulgaria, the Netherlands, and the Czech Republic are attracting
overseas investors through their websites. Several general patterns stand out in the
study conducted by West (2004). The most noteworthy feature is the extent to which
English has become the language of global eGovernance. Some 72 per cent of
national government websites have an English version of the site, while 28 per cent
do not. Reflecting the multi-linguistic nature of global interactions, many nations
offer more than one language on their websites. For example, almost half (45 per
cent) have two or more languages on their government sites. Other than English,
common languages include Spanish, French, Russian, German, Italian, Portuguese,
Arabic and Chinese. In terms of information availability, many countries have made
considerable progress in putting publications, forms and databases online for citizen
access. Government agencies have discovered that it is very efficient for the general
public to be able to download common documents rather than having to visit or call
the particular agency. 35 Accessed 10 December 2004 from: <http://www.nks.nhs.uk/> 36 Global eGovernment Survey. 2004. [online] Accessed 9 August 2005 from: <http://www.worldmarketsanalysis.com/pdf/e-govreport.pdf > 37 For details see: Bhatnagar, S. 2003. Transparency and Corruption: Does E-Government Help? DRAFT Paper Prepared for the Compilation of CHRI 2003 Report OPEN SESAME: Looking for the Right to Information in the Commonwealth, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative, 2003. Accessed 11 January 2005 from: <http://www.iimahd.ernet.in/~subhash/pdfs/CHRIDraftPaper2003.pdf#search='can%20egovernance%20curb%20corruption%20in%20tax%20departments>
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However, many countries have not made similar progress in placing official
government services online. There is a wide variation throughout countries and by
region of the world in the extent to which citizens can access government services
through the internet. While some governments offer a number of services online,
most do not (West, 2004: 1–21).
Heeks (2001a) says that the vision guiding eGovernance initiatives is that countries
can and must accelerate the pace of online service delivery to achieve the benefits of
eGovernance, otherwise developing countries will be left on the ‘wrong side of an
ever-widening divide’. According to Heeks countries in the North and elites in the
South will be winners while the poor in the South will be losers as inequalities grow
(Heeks, 2001a). Bertucci (1995) in surveying developing countries globally cautions
that there are key problems in implementation of eGovernance projects in developing
countries. These are institutional weaknesses, human resources, funding, local
environment, technology and information. A central issue much talked about in the
literature is ‘digital divide’. Although ICT holds great promise for achieving good
governance, access to, and therefore, the benefits of, ICT are not universal. The
digital divide threatens to increase the already existing development gap within and
among the countries (Bertucci, 1995; Loader and Keeble, 2004; BECT, 2001, cited
in Loader and Keeble, 2004; Carvin, 2000a, 2000b, cited in Loader and Keeble,
2004; Davison and Cotton, 2003, cited in Loader and Keeble, 2004; Hall Aitken,
2001, cited in Loader and Keeble, 2004; Perri and Jupp, 2001, cited in Loader and
Keeble, 2004; Selwyn, 2002, cited in Loader and Keeble, 2004; Compaine, 2001,
cited in Loader and Keeble, 2004; Graham, 2002, cited in Loader and Keeble, 2004;
ESCAP, 2004).
In this section of the thesis an attempt has been made to succinctly summarize the
literature findings and present an update of how countries are ranked on electronic
service delivery and public outreach. A detailed analysis is given of global
eGovernance ratings by regions of the world and the pace at which eGovernance is
progressing is discussed.
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2.3.1 Electronic Service Delivery
Fully executable, online service delivery benefits both government and its
constituents. In the long run, such services have the potential to lower the costs of
service delivery and make services more widely accessible to the general public,
because they no longer have to visit, write to or call an agency in order to execute a
specific service. As more and more services are put online, eGovernance is
revolutionizing the relationship between government and citizens. 38 For
eGovernance service delivery, it is especially pertinent to look at the number/types of
services offered online. The findings from West’s (2004: 4) research of 1, 935
websites (comprising 198 nations) examined around the world shows that North
America (which includes the United States, Canada, and Mexico) offered the highest
percentage of online services and stood at fifty-three per cent in 2004 (up by 8 per
cent in 2003). Second ranking was for Pacific Ocean Islands at 43 per cent, followed
by Asia which offered 30 per cent online services, Western Europe at 29 per cent,
and the Middle East at 19 per cent. Only 2 per cent in Russia/Central Asia, 8 per cent
in Africa, and 8 per cent of sites in Eastern Europe offered online government
services. This data is summarized in table 2.1.
Table 2.1 Percentage of Government Sites Offering Online Services by Region of World Regions 2001 2002 2003 2004 North America 28 41 45 53 Pacific Island Oceans 19 14 17 43 Asia 12 26 26 30 Middle East 10 15 24 19 Western Europe 9 10 17 29 Eastern Europe --- 2 6 8 Central America 4 4 9 17 South America 3 7 14 10 Russia/Central Asia 2 1 1 2 Africa 2 2 5 8
38 Global eGovernment Survey. 2004. [online] Accessed 9 August 2005 from: <http://www.worldmarketsanalysis.com/pdf/e-govreport.pdf >
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(Source: West, D.M. 2004. Global eGovernance Full Report. Page 4. Accessed 10 July 2005 from: <http://www.mcconnellinternational.com/ereadiness/The_Global_E-Government_Outlook.pdf>
After reviewing the percentage of government sites offering online services, it is
especially relevant to examine the extent of global public outreach.
2.3.2 Public Outreach
Public outreach is basically the features on government websites that allow citizens
to contact government officials (West, 2004). eGovernance offers the potential of
‘reshaping the public sector activities and processes…’, to strengthen the
government’s capacity and provide a voice for those outside the government—
citizens (Ndou, 2004: 2). Regardless of the type of socio-economic and political
system that a country has, the public benefits from interactive features that facilitate
communication between citizens and government. West (2004) looked for various
features that would help citizens contact government officials and make use of
information on websites. ‘Email is an interactive feature that allows ordinary
citizens to pose questions of government officials or request information or services’
(West, 2004: 6). In his study, West found that 88 per cent (an increase of 4 per cent
from 2003) of government websites offered email contact material so that citizens
could email a particular public service official in the departments. Sixteen per cent
of government websites offered areas to post comments through the use of message
boards and chat rooms which allowed citizens and department members alike to read
and respond to others’ comments regarding issues faced by the department.
Similarly, sixteen per cent (an increase by 4 per cent in 2003) of government
websites had email updates. This allowed web users to input their personal
information such as names, addresses, etc., to receive information about a particular
subject as new information became available. Only two per cent of sites allowed
websites to be personalized to the interests of the users, and one per cent (decline by
1 per cent in 2003) provided personal digital assistant (PDA) access (West, 2004: 7).
2.3.3 Top eGovernance Countries
In order to ascertain how the 198 nations ranked overall in West (2004) research, the
data is grouped in the form of a table. In looking at the overall eGovernance scores
by region in 2004, Table 2.2 shows that North America had the highest ranking at
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39.2 per cent (decline by 1 per cent in 2003), followed by Asia at 31.6 per cent
(down by 2.7 per cent in 2003), third was Western Europe at 30.0 per cent (decline
by 3.1 per cent in 2003), and fourth was Pacific Ocean Islands at 29.9 per cent (down
by 2.2 per cent in 2003). This was followed by the Middle East at 28.1 per cent
(decline by 4 per cent in 2003) and Eastern Europe at 28.0 per cent (also down by 4
per cent in 2003). Russia and Central Asia were ranked seventh (25.3 per cent), a
decline by 4.4 per cent in 2003 and South America scored 24.3 per cent (decline by
5.2 per cent in 2003). Central America was ranked ninth (24.1 per cent, decline by
4.5 per cent in 2003) and last was Africa scoring 22.0 per cent (decline by 5.6 per
cent in 2003).
Table 2.2 eGovernance Ratings by Region 2001 2002 2003 2004
North America 51.0 60.4 40.2 39.2
Western Europe 34.1 47.6 33.1 30.0
Eastern Europe --- 43.5 32.0 28.0
Asia 34.0 48.7 34.3 31.6
Middle East 31.1 43.2 32.1 28.1
Russia/Central Asia 30.9 37.2 29.7 25.3
South America 30.7 42.0 29.5 24.3
Pacific Ocean Islands 30.6 39.5 32.1 29.9
Central America 27.7 41.4 28.6 24.1
Africa 23.5 36.8 27.6 22.0
(Source: West, D.M. 2004. Global eGovernance Full Report. Page 7. Accessed 10 July 2005 from: <http://www.mcconnellinternational.com/ereadiness/The_Global_E-Government_Outlook.pdf.> Overall, it appears that progress has been made in global eGovernance over the past
years. The evidence presented in sub-section 2.3.1, 2.3.2 and 2.3.3 clearly shows
how nations are offering new online services, thereby recognizing the growing role
of new electronic technologies in everyday life.
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In spite of the trend forward by countries in eGovernance initiatives, there are still a
number of issues such as access and effectiveness of global sites that hampers their
ability to reach their full potential in terms of electronic service delivery (West,
2004). According to West, there are some sites with several links that do not work
(for example Tanzania). He further illustrates the case of other nations having links
that take an incredibly long time to load or lead users to incorrect sites (for example
the Zambia Tourist Board site). West stresses that websites should be user friendly
to accrue benefits from electronic service delivery. Another issue he raises is the fact
that many sites are under construction or have not been updated for long periods of
time, causing dissatisfaction for users. Therefore, West emphasizes that IT designers
must attempt to keep the sites as up-to-date as possible to ensure that all information
presented is accurate and complete (West, 2004: 4, 8). Nevertheless, sites that had
‘A–Z indexes, a clear list of links to a government agency or department web pages,
and organized their online services by agency or function instead of one
comprehensive list were much more navigable and user-friendly’ (West, 2004: 8).
West (2004: 9) succinctly explains that perhaps the biggest hurdle that eGovernance
nations surveyed face are: ‘lack of organization and cultured portals, technical
difficulties and language barriers’. He further elucidates that by overcoming these
barriers, governments can fully harness the potential of online services by providing
access in real terms and improving the overall effectiveness of sites, whilst, citizens
can benefit from greater public outreach.
Against this background of global scenario at hand, now it becomes essential to
explore the policies and practices of eGovernance in the Pacific.
2.4 The Pacific Context This section explains the context of eGovernance in the Pacific.39 The 14 countries
that make up Pacific Island Countries (PICs) cover 30 million square kilometres of
ocean and have a total population of fewer than 8 million. ‘The socioeconomic
39 According to Guild (2003) Pacific Island States comprises: Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), Fiji Islands, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea (PNG), Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu. (For full reference see Guild, R. 2003. Pacific Island States. Available from: <http://www.digital-review.org/03_Pacific_Island_States.htm>
- 44 -
characteristics of these countries vary widely, perhaps more so than in any other
region of the world’ (Guild, 2003: 1). There is a huge difference in terms of national
populations, income levels, educational attainment and access of ICTs in these
countries. A country as small as Niue has a population of no more than 1,500 while
a country like Papua New Guinea has 5.1 million. The income levels differ from
only US$700 in Kiribati to over US$8,000 in Palau. Similarly, a wide variation
exists in ICT infrastructure development. While Fiji has had internet access since
1995, in nations such as Tuvalu this has come in since 2000. Whilst Solomons have
at least 90 per cent of its population in remote areas, and access becomes a key issue,
for Nauru it is zero.40 Overall, telephone usage is high and mostly concentrated in
urban centres. Likewise, educational attainment ranges from sub-primary to
postgraduate degrees (Guild, 2003: 1; UNESCO, 2002).
Less than 25 per cent of Pacific islanders access ICTs through their homes, schools,
workplaces and public access centres (Guild, 2003). Palau and Vanuatu, however,
have higher access rates in comparison to other PICs. Vanuatu has over 75 per cent
internet access in public centres and workplaces while, Palau has between 50–75 per
cent internet access in workplaces and 25–50 per cent access in schools (UNESCO,
2002). The UNESCO (2002) survey shows that public access facilities in Niue and
Vanuatu is reaching a large number of population. Internet users in all other PICs
are served by monopoly Internet service providers (ISPs), except for Papua New
Guinea, Samoa and Tonga which have a choice of ISPs. Tonga’s service provider is
Tonga Communication Corporation, Samoa has three ISP providers, namely
Computer Services Limited, iPacifika and LeSamoa, and Papua New Guinea has
multiple ISPs, among which are; Daltron Electronics, Datec, Global Net, Online
South Pacific Limited and High Tech Industries Limited (UNESCO, 2002). Tonga
provides broadband services to its residential users, while the remaining PICs depend
on dial-up services by the use of telephone system. Businesses and institutional
users depend on leased lines, while international services are provided by Papua New
Guinea and Fiji as they have submarine cable links, and others rely on satellites
(Guild, 2003; UNESCO, 2002).
40 Guild, R. 2003. Pacific Island States. Available from: <http://www.digital-review.org/03_Pacific_Island_States.htm>
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As ‘island nations are made up of archipelagos having distinct transport and
communication challenges’ (Hassall, 2005: 3), the sections of population located in
islands and remote areas are unable to access the Internet (Guild, 2003) creating a
huge urban–rural bias. There are exceptions only in the case of Cook Islands, which
does provide telephone access to its outer islands. As users on mainlands are reached
via traditional means, those that are in remote areas are contacted through high
frequency radio and only in a few cases via satellite links. Federated States of
Micronesia and Fiji Islands are the only two countries introducing wireless access to
remote areas; otherwise wireless technology is uncommon (Guild, 2003).
Affordability is a key problem for PICs because connectivity charges are amongst
the highest in the world. ‘Subscription and dial-up access to the Internet range from
US$3 to US$175 per month, with an average of US$50’ (Guild, 2003: 2).
Pacific island countries, in their drive to pursue an active role in employing
eGovernance, face a lot of obstacles. It is evident that issues of bandwidth and cost
of telecommunication infrastructure are perceived as major constraints. Other factors
are regulatory and institutional capacity, problems with power supply and limited
human resource capacity within the nations (UNESCO, 2002; Guild, 2003). In spite
of these hurdles, a number of organizations in PICs are finding ways to increase web
presence. Surveys by UNESCO (2002) and Guild (2003) highlight that many PICs
have website URL, suggesting a growing interest within governments in attempting
to make better use of ICTs.
According to Guild (2003) there are five categories of indigenous content produced
within the Pacific region. These are news sites, portal sites and directories,
government sites and regional sites. This is exemplified by Guild (2003) and a
UNESCO (2002) study that shows Cook Islands, FSM, Kiribati, Fiji, Niue, PNG, and
Vanuatu are amongst others having high web presence and indigenous content.
In the Pacific, a Pacific Islands Regional Information and Communication
Technologies Strategic plan is being devised. The vision of this plan is ‘Information
and Communication Technologies for every Pacific Islander’.41 According to the
41 Draft Pacific Islands Regional Information And Communication Technologies Strategic Plan. Accessed 9 August 2005 from: <http://www.forumsec.org.fj/division/DEPD/infra/ICT/ICTsurveyreport2002.pdf >
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Pacific Telecentre Workshop (2004) on ‘Connecting Island Communities: Pacific
Telecentre’ it was noted that the new Pacific Plan, endorsed at the Pacific Leaders
Forum in 2004, identifies a digital strategy that recognises ICTs as a priority for
Pacific Island countries. The Pacific Islands ICT Policy and Strategic Plan (PIIPP)
identifies infrastructure development including rural telecentres as a specific priority.
It also highlighted that PICs are all at different stages of development in terms of
both ICTs and telecentres; some are well ahead, others are just starting, some are still
meeting, others are thinking and some are simply watching. As well, even within
each PIC, especially those with many different isolated islands, the availability of
basic power and telecommunications infrastructure varies widely. The Pacific
Strategy has revealed four guiding principles of which the most relevant for this
research is Guiding principle 2: ‘Appropriate ICT Infrastructure To Support
Development For Pacific Islands’ and Guiding principle 3 ‘Easy Access To
Information Through ICT Will Strengthen Cooperation Between Stakeholders To
Ensure Good Governance, To Develop The Private Sector And To Improve Service
Delivery.42 After reviewing studies by local authors on eGovernance in the Pacific,
it is important to see how PICs are ranked in line with global surveys. According to
the Global eGovernance Survey (2003) figure 2.1 presents the graph showing
eGovernance readiness of Pacific.
Figure 2.1: eReadiness Ranking for Pacific Island Countries
42
6882
117 121 122136
162172 173
185 190
0
50
100
150
200
Rea
dine
ss L
evel
1FSM Fiji Tonga Samoa Nauru Solomons PNG Vanuatu Marshalls Palau Kiribati Tuvalu
Note: Data for Cook Islands and Niue was not available in the survey results.
42 Draft Pacific Islands Regional Information And Communication Technologies Strategic Plan. Accessed 9 August 2005 from: <http://www.forumsec.org.fj/division/DEPD/infra/ICT/ICTsurveyreport2002.pdf >
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(Source: Data Adopted from UN Global eGovernance Survey 2003. Accessed 10 December 2004 from: <http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/un/unpan016066.pdf>).
It can be seen that the Federated States of Micronesia (42), followed by Fiji (68) and
then Tonga (82) and Samoa (121), out of a total of 200 countries ranking rate well on
the rating scale. Reports by UNESCO (2002) highlight similar results. The detailed
PIC profile in given in Appendix 2.1. A study conducted by Wescott (2003) says that
Asia-Pacific countries are now coming to realize the vast potential of eGovernance in
reducing corruption. This brings to light the issue that eGovernance is being
recognized as a tool for corruption in service delivery. In light of Wescott’s study it
becomes prudent to analyze the context of eGovernance in Fiji.
2.5 eGovernance Policies and Practices in Fiji ‘Since the establishment of internet access in Fiji in 1995, internet policy has been
developed in the country in the context of both national and regional development.
Fiji has aspired to lead digital commerce in the region. In August 2004, The Qarase
Government affirmed its commitment to the ‘Bangkok Agenda Action Plan on
Broadband and Information, Communication and Technology Development’,43 an
agreement calling for government action at national, sub-regional and regional levels
to encourage broadband access and usage. In addition to having one of the largest
economies in the South Pacific, Fiji is the host nation to a number of regional inter-
governmental agencies, and this combination of national and regional interests is
driving the rapid elaboration of ICT policy and utilization’ (Hassall, 2005: 1).
The use of ICT within government developed gradually and without an overall
guiding strategy. Information Technology and Computing Services (ITC,
www.itc.gov.fj), which started out as a small unit within the Ministry of Finance, has
since expanded its role and today is the official ICT department for the whole of the
Fiji government (ITU, 2004). For three decades this department has been principally
concerned with the provision of server capacity to government departments and
43 Accessed 10 June 2005 from: <http://www/aptsec.org/meetings/2004/wsis/BKKAgenda%20Original.doc> cited in Hassall, G. 2005. ITC Policy and Practice in the Fiji Islands: National and Regional Dimensions. Encyclopaedia of Developing Regional Communities with ICT. Accessed 10 October 2005 from <http://www.piasdg.usp.ac.fj/>
- 48 -
agencies.44 Policy development for eGovernance was hindered in the late 1990s by
the shortage of experienced ICT professionals. Political instability has had an impact,
with some ICT professionals undoubtedly emigrating.45 The only sectors making use
of computing services during the 1990s included Customs and Inland Revenue,
Education, Treasury, Taxation, The Electoral Commission and the Criminal Justice
System (Information Technology and Computing Services (ITC), 1995, 1996, cited
in Hassall, 2005: 2). ‘Pressures from providing day to day services to government,
as well as the need to address the ‘Year 2000’ issue prevented any activity on ICT
Policy during the period 1997 to 1999’(ICT, 1997, 1999, cited in Hassall, 2005: 2).
By the end of 2000 ITC had connected most ministries and departments in Suva to
the Internet through the government network GOVNET (ITU, 2004). In 2001, the IT
Advisory Council (ITAC) was set up to advise the Minister of Communications on
policy. The Council included representatives of key government ministries, the
academic community and the private sector (ibid.). The ITAC drafted an ICT policy.
The draft policy had the vision ‘to harness Fiji’s ideal geographic location,
competent workforce and world-class information technology infrastructure to
promote Fiji’s international competitiveness and create a dynamic, vibrant and well
connected e-society’.46 In 2002, the Council reported to the second Preparatory
Committee (Prepcom) for WSIS (World Summit on the Information Society) that the
vision of the National ICT Strategy Plan was ‘To Develop Fiji Into A Vibrant and
Dynamic Pacific ICT Capital With A Thriving Digital Economy and IT Empowered
Citizens’.47 According to this report four cornerstone programs defined the National
ICT Strategy Plan: eGovernment, eCommerce, ePersonal and ICT industry. At this
stage the ITAC was ready to broaden consultation to include more government
stakeholders. On the basis of consultations through a workshop organized in June
2002, the ICT Council drafted the ‘Fiji ICT Policy’ in 2003. The official Fiji
44 Accessed 10 June 2005 from:< http://www.itc.gov.fj> 45 According to the Ministry of Finance and National Planning web site, between 1986 and 1996, an estimated 12% of Fiji’s 1986 labour force emigrated (33,000 of 274,000). Between 4,000 and 6,000 persons per year left the country between 1997 and 2001 cited in ITU. 2004. Bula Internet: Fiji ICT Case Study. Accessed 10 October 2005 from: <http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/ict/cs/> 46 Information Technology Advisory Council (ITAC). 2003. Policy Directions and Strategies for the Development and Growth of Information and Communication Technology. Draft October 2003. Accessed 31 August 2004 from <www.itc.gov.fj> 47 Accessed 10 June 2005 from: <www.itc.gov.fj\wsis_prepcom2.doc >
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Government web site, at www.fiji.gov.fj, was hosted and maintained by the Ministry
of Information. The site included official press releases and links to government
agencies with their own web site. In August 2003, four out of 25 ministries as well
as some agencies and the Parliament (www.parliament.gov.fj/main/index.aspx) had
their own web sites. Notable exceptions include the Ministry of Communications
and the Ministry of Education.48
A ‘significant actor in ICT development has been the University of the South Pacific.
The University has an active plan to promote ICT capacity. In May, 2004 the
University responded to the Fiji Governments International Telecommuting
Advisory Council (ITAC) Draft Policy ‘e-Fiji: The Future Online’. The University
identified lack of human capital and ICT networks as problematic areas’ (Hassall,
2005: 3). Toland and Purcell (2002) identify that limited ICT infrastructure and
access is leading to a sharp division between rural and urban areas in Fiji. Research
has confirmed that a strong urban bias exists for internet use in all developing
countries worldwide (UNDP, 2001). ‘As the island nations are made up of
archipelagos having distinct transport and communication challenges, ICT Policies
need to be established at the outset that aid in reducing rather than multiplying the
digital divide’ (Hassall, 2005: 3). The scenario for Fiji is such that from a policy
perspective, the objective is to provide the necessary impetus for the development of
the information economy. For the information economy the key policy objectives
include the following: Unleashing the potential and use of ICT utilizing world best
practice; improving the quality of life, education and work for the people of Fiji with
particular emphasis on bridging the “digital divide”; joining the world scene – United
Nations Millennium Development Goals (UNMDG)/ World Summit on the
Information Society (WSIS) /Declaration of Principles (DOP) /Plan Of Action
(POA), Bangkok Agenda (BA); strategizing for private sector investment via
strategic partnerships and new alliances in business with particular focus on specific
48 ITU. 2004. Bula Internet: Fiji ICT Case Study. Accessed 10 October 2005 from: <http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/ict/cs/>
- 50 -
interest groups; and maximizing economic gains and niche market opportunities.49
The e-Fiji Policy framework is presented on the next page:
Figure 2.2: e-Fiji Policy framework
(Adapted From Information Technology Advisory Council (ITAC). Policy Directions and Strategies for the Development and Growth of Information and Communication Technology. Draft October 2003. cited in International Telecommunication Union (ITU). 2004. Bula internet: Fiji Internet Case Study. Accessed 10 October 2005 from <http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/ict/cs> In this ‘e-Fiji’ Plan the focus is on eGovernance as a priority as test-bed for e-Fiji.
The eGovernance applications are as follows: e-Filing of income tax, company office
search/registration, drivers license, births/deaths and marriage registrations and
immigration.50 The key idea of the IT platform is to have two data centres where
intranet and extranet will be separated for security reasons. Intranet will carry the
information concerned with national confidential and the governmental internal
office automation. This intranet will not face the public for confidential guarantee.
49 Fiji Brief: Sub-regional Symposium On ICT For Development In Pacific Islands Developing Countries 6-9 December 2004 - Suva, Fiji, Ministry Of Information, Communications And Media Relations. Accessed 10 July 2005 from: <http://www1.oecd.org/daf/asiacom/pdf/str_fijiislands.pdf> 50 Fiji Brief: Sub-regional Symposium On ICT For Development In Pacific Islands Developing Countries 6-9 December 2004 - Suva, Fiji, Ministry Of Information, Communications And Media Relations. Accessed 10 July 2005 from: <http://www1.oecd.org/daf/asiacom/pdf/str_fijiislands.pdf>
e-FIJI the future
online
STRATEGIC OUTCOMES e--FIJI the future
online
Community e-empowered Business
e-enabled Governnment
On line
Community groups and not-for-profit organizations understand the Internet and are able to use it to access information,
government services and business products and services and to create dialogue and enhance civic awareness and action
Businesses using the Internet to open new
markets, drive efficiencies and reduce costs, meet customer
expectations and create a competitive
advantage
Government providing services online to
improve uptake and access to services,
create efficiencies and cost savings, shift
emphasis from process to quality of services
and to enhance government policies
and initiatives
- 51 -
The extranet on the other hand, will face the public directly and will focus on
eGovernance applications and will be used to drive intranet development.51
By reviewing the policies it becomes essential to review the ICT Infrastructure and
technology in Fiji. Fiji Islands in 2001 had a teledensity of 112 per 1,000 people
which is more than East Asia and Pacific, which had 110. The cost of local calls
($ per three minutes) for Fiji in 2001 stood at 0.05 and 0.02 in Asia and the Pacific.
International telecommunications outgoing traffic (minutes per subscriber) for Fiji
2001 was 180 and East Asia/Pacific amounted to 49. And cost of USA calls (per 3
mins) in 2001 for Fiji was 4.03 and East Asia/Pacific (4.62). Internet use is
concentrated in the urban and suburban areas, although the rural areas usage rate is
increasing due to various government access strategies and foreign aid. These
figures suggest that the challenges for ICT development (in terms of internet access)
in Fiji are due to low internet usage (ITU, 2002, cited in Singh, 2004). In addition to
looking at the ICT statistics for Fiji, the following shows the rural sector penetration
of access.
Table 2.3: Sector statistics: Rural Telecommunications November 2003 Villages Households Population Provided Access Percentage
1,671 73,168 415,582 950 56.83 Division Villages Households Population Provided Access
Central 400 14,295 82,976 250 Eastern 274 6,936 3,702 189 Northern 428 17,835 109,465 213 Western 569 34,103 186,114 298
(Adapted From Fiji Brief: Sub-regional Symposium On ICT For Development In Pacific Islands
Developing Countries 6-9 December 2004 - Suva, Fiji, Ministry Of Information,
Communications And Media Relations. Accessed 10 July 2005 from:
<http://www1.oecd.org/daf/asiacom/pdf/str_fijiislands.pdf>
It can be gauged that the Government of Fiji is embarking on a 3-year eGovernance
Business Solution Program and Government Information Infrastructure (GII)
Program with the main aim of moving Government services online to ease the
delivery of services. ICT services plans to host these applications with mirror sites
51 ibid.
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offshore to ensure availability. Solutions provided should take this into account and
provide for it. The main aim of this business solution is to improve service delivery
and productivity by promoting public sectors ‘Service Excellence’ (Government of
Fiji, 2005). The objective of employing eGovernance for the Ministries is to ensure:
(1) improved productivity; (2) less paper handling; (3) less verification and data
entry; (4) better recovery of delayed revenue; (5) deployment of manpower for value
added service and complex issue; (6) consolidated and consistent data and (7) data
accuracy and easy availability (Government of Fiji, 2005).
The objective for companies and individuals is to: (1) save time; (2) transact over
internet and (3) transact faster and assure turnaround time. It is thought that the
smaller and poorer countries like Fiji should undertake regional eGovernance
alliances that would allow them to pool resources and gain greater efficiency at
building their infrastructure. These efforts at regional cooperation are valuable
because they put countries in a position where they can share knowledge and
experience as well as lower their overall costs (Fiji Country Report, 2005).
Unfortunately monopolistic telecom services is blocking Fiji from participating fully
in the tremendous global opportunities (ibid.).
2.6 Problem Statement The literature shows that the developing countries are failing to identify potential
areas of eGovernance application because of which they are behind in terms of
development. eGovernance has received considerable attention from policy makers
and researchers. The renewed interest in research is mainly attributable to the
pivotal role of eGovernance that acts as a catalyst for reducing corruption. The
literature survey has failed to provide any evidence of substantive methodologically
sound, empirically reliable research on eGovernance and corruption reduction for
public service delivery in Fiji. Therefore, it becomes essential to identify areas in
government where ICT can be successfully applied as a tool in curbing corruption
and improving the quality of life of the citizens. This can be envisaged if successful
application makes the public sector, simple, moral, accountable, responsive and
transparent (SMART) and brings the public sector closer to the citizens by
empowering them and reducing bureaucratic delays. This is the reason for
focusing on Fiji’s public sector so that the potential of eGovernance as a tool for
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reducing corruption can be explored and policy recommendations made towards
incorporating eGovernance as a tool for reducing corruption for the democratic
revival of Fiji.
2.7 Objectives of the Study 2.7.1 General
To investigate and explore the potential of eGovernance applications in Fiji’s
public sector both in terms of process and policy to curb corruption and
increase efficiency and responsiveness as well as accountability and
transparency.
2.7.2 Specific
This study will:
[i] Investigate the ICT applications in selected government
ministry/department and investigate the extent to which IT
applications can bring about faster delivery and reduce bureaucratic
delays.
[ii] Recommend how eGovernance can be applied in terms of processes
and policy to curb corruption
[iii] Illustrate constraints to potential application of the framework and
suggest ways to overcome such barriers.
2.8 Hypotheses
Based on the hypothesized model the following proposed relations are
summarized in the following hypothesis about eGovernance, principal–agent
and reduced corruption interaction:
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H1: eGovernance is positively related to principal–agent and corruption
reduction
H2: Principal–agent is positively related to corruption reduction
H3: Corruption reduction is dependent on principal–agent (is not related)
H4: The independent variable (eGovernance) will significantly explain the
variance in corruption reduction
2.9 Core Research Questions
1. Can ICT/eGovernance increase transparency and accountability and reduce
corruption in Fiji’s public sector? If yes. How so? If not. Why not?
2. What factors contribute to success of eGovernance in fighting corruption?
3. What factors can contribute to the failure of ICT/eGovernance in fighting
corruption?
4. What environment and policy issues affect successful deployment of
ICT/eGovernance for SMART Governance?
2.10 Justification/Focus of Research As a relatively new topic in the Asia–Pacific region, there is a clear need for
empirical research on eGovernance vis–à–vis corruption. Research is required to
shed light on potential ICT application in Fiji so that governments as well as the
public administration can accelerate good governance in public sector which at
present is rife with corruption. Focusing specifically on Fiji’s public sector, this
research will show how the potential of ICTs can be harnessed to transform the
public sector by making it more citizen–centric, responsive, transparent and
accountable, moral and efficient. It will show how other developing countries have
reduced corruption by deploying generic models and how Fiji can do the same with
new ICTs/eGovernance.
Knowledge derived from this study will be policy–oriented so that the gap between
research and needs of new public management can be bridged. This eGovernance
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and corruption research seeks to harvest the solutions that are already in place and
working and bringing those to the attention of decision makers in Fiji, so that the
policy makers can develop a toolkit of how ICT can reduce corruption in the public
sector. The research focuses on the positive effects today’s information society has
for the reduction of the frequencies of frauds and the benefits ICTs can bring to
people and society, whereby the technology itself is not an issue.
The core idea is to highlight those experiences, which at present show some of the
most inspirational and innovative approaches to building the corruption-free society
for all, and to present the results to the policy makers, and public administrators
where the persistence of the corruption problem is very strong. The research offers
something very practical to people interested in reducing corruption, namely specific
models that advance development of public administration in ways that brings with it
the automatic reduction of corrupt activities without creating more “red tape”
through altering principal–agent problems that have escalated corruption in past.
This research will also supplement the future work of the Pacific Institute of
Advanced Studies in Development and Governance at the University of the South
Pacific, as digital governance is part of their five-year work plan and thus this study
will be valuable.
2.11 Conclusion This chapter has reviewed the literature on eGovernance from the global and regional
perspectives and outlined the gaps in research. This was followed by the
presentation of the research problem and justification for the research. Lastly, the
objectives, hypotheses and research questions have been developed, which will be
achieved by using a set of instruments outlined in Chapter 3.
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Chapter 3
Methodology
3.1 Introduction This chapter outlines the research methodology for this study. It specifies and
justifies the necessity to incorporate a blend of quantitative and qualitative research
methods. In addition, it explains the process of data collection and analysis as well
as acknowledging some of the main constraints and intertwining factors associated
with the research methodology that could affect a comprehensive analysis of the
facts.
3.2 Methodology Scholars agree that there exists no single research method or instrument that is
excellent or superior to another (Morse and Richards, 2002, cited in Narayan, 2004;
Wilkinson and Birmingham, 2003, cited in Narayan, 2004; Burns, 1996). Burns
(1996: 11) comments that ‘there is more than one gate to the kingdom of knowledge’.
Burns further says that each gate offers a different perspective (ibid.). Thaman
(1992) in line with the above, argues that a range of sources of information is needed
for good research. This study therefore, uses a mixture of quantitative and
qualitative research tools. According to Burns (1996) both approaches are needed,
since no one methodology can answer all questions and provide insights on all issues.
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‘Quantitative research is broadly based on the ideals of positivism which arose some
200 years ago in the ideas of Auguste Compte (1798–1857). These ideas espouse
precise quantitative data and value rigorous, exact measures. The hallmarks of good
research are seen as objective observation, precise measurements, statistical analysis
and verifiable truths’ (Cavana et al., 2000). Quantitative research is an organized
method for combining deductive logic with precise empirical observations of
individual behavior in order to discover and confirm a set of probabilistic causal laws
that can be used to predict general patterns of human activity (Neuman, 1997: 3,
cited in Cavana et al., 2000; Maykut and Morehouse, 1994). On the other hand,
qualitative research is a method based on the ideals of phenomenology and generally
examines people’s words and actions in narrative or descriptive ways more closely
representing the situation as experienced by the participants (Cavana et al., 2000;
Maykut and Morehouse, 1994). It is a type of research not arrived at by statistical
procedures or other means of quantification and can be used to explore substantive
areas about which little is known or about which much is known to gain novel
understanding (Stern, 1980, cited in Strauss and Corbin, 1998; Strauss and Corbin,
1998). Wilkinson and Birmingham (2003: 76) cited in Narayan (2004: 8) express the
worth of qualitative research:
Qualitative research is concerned with capturing the richness and describing the unique complexities of data. Some argue that counting numbers so dilutes the quality of information collected so as to make little use.
Morse and Richards (2002: 2) agree with Wilkinson and Birmingham (2003) that
qualitative research will lose meaning if preemptively reduced to numbers.
According to Barton and Lazarsfeld qualitative investigation is like ‘the nets of deep-
sea explorers, qualitative studies may pull up unexpected and striking things for us to
gaze on’ (Barton and Lazarsfeld, 1969: 166, cited in Burns, 1996: 13). This method
not only enables the researcher to resolve confusions with defensible and useful
conclusions, but is practical and reliable (Morse and Richards, 2002, cited in
Narayan, 2004; Wilkinson and Birmingham, 2003, cited in Narayan, 2004; Burns,
1996).
Therefore, because both research methods have their share of strengths, the
researcher seeks to harness and provide accurate and comprehensive information on
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which to base conclusions and recommendations. However, it is essential to pinpoint
that as far as quantitative analysis is concerned results are generalizable and
replicable, but the qualitative analysis in this study cannot be replicated to any extent,
nor can generalizations be made to the wider context than the one that will be studied.
3.3 Research Tools This study was conducted through two broad methodological frameworks, namely
quantitative and qualitative research. The following were the specific research tools
for the methods suggested:
3.3.1 Quantitative Research: Survey Using Structured Questionnaire
Structured questionnaires were distributed to different groups of respondents based
on random sampling. Once the questionnaires were designed, and before using the
questionnaire to gather data on which to make decisions or recommendations, the
researcher conducted pretests. According to Cavana et al. (2000) there are several
types of pre-tests that can be carried out; amongst the most important are face
validity, content validity and a pilot study. In this research a pilot study consisting of
a sample of 35 respondents was conducted. This helped the researcher test the face
validity. Face validity addresses the concern of whether the questionnaire appears to
measure the concepts being investigated (Burns, 1994, cited in Cavana et al., 2000).
Of particular interest is whether the respondents find the wording of the items clear
and understandable. In addition, this aided in identifying weaknesses/problems in
the questionnaire which was overcome through revision. After the questionnaires
were pre-tested and validated, survey was conducted. The sample size of 400 for the
field survey was calculated using the sample calculator on the website.52 From the
population size in each division, percentages were calculated to get approximate
representation of the sample.53 Out of a sample of 400, 300 were citizens and 100
were public service employees.54 Out of the four divisions in Fiji, three (Central,
52 Accessed 31 May 2005 from <http://www.surveysystem.com/sscalc.htm#cineeded> 53 Example: For Central division; Fijians = 175,878, so from total it gives us 175,878/total (297,607) which equals 59 %. This way representative sample was drawn for all ethnic groups from population, to reduce biasness and ensure equal representativeness. This is only for 300 citizen sample. 54 Only 100 public service employees were selected because most would have been covered in sample of 300. However to specifically target them 100 seemed a reasonable size.
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Western and Northern) were randomly selected. After arranging them in
alphabetical order, three were selected using random number tables (Babbie: 2001:
A33). This was followed by stratified random sampling, whereby the researcher
tried to ensure that the number of people selected for survey were in proportion to the
respective population in each division. The advantage was that it ‘added an extra
ingredient to random sampling by ensuring that groups or strata within the
population are each sampled randomly. It offers increased possibility of accuracy…’
(Burns, 1996: 83). Appendix 3.2 contains a detailed breakdown of areas within each
division.
Table 3.1: Population Figures for Central, Western and Northern Divisions in Fiji
Area Race Population
(1996 census)
Percentage
(of division)
Percentage
(of total)
Sample
Size
Central Division Fijian 175,878 59% *** 59
Indian 98,660 33% *** 33
Others 23,069 8% 8
Total 297,607 100% 50% 100
Western Division Fijian 116,455 39% *** 39
Indian 172,975 58% *** 58
Others 7,754 3% 3
Total 297,184 100% 50% 100
Northern Fijian 64,940 46% *** 46
Indian 66,488 47% *** 47
Others 8,088 7% 7
Total 139,516 100% 50% 100
Sample frame 726,219 *** 100% 300
(Adapted from Statistical News: Census 1996 Results: Population, Size, Growth and
Structure, Fiji Islands Bureau of Statistics, Suva. p 9).
The difference in populations of males and females through most of the population
was negligible. Therefore, an equal number of males and females were selected. The
stratified random sampling technique has the least bias and the most generalizability
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(Cavana et al., 2001). The sample was diverse in terms of gender, age, ethnicity, and
educational background. Some sets of questionnaires were self administered and
some were hand delivered to the respective group of respondents. The survey was
conducted between April and July, 2005 to allow the researcher to cover Central,
Western and Northern Divisions respectively. The three hundred questionnaires
targeting individual citizens were collected via multi-method which entailed personal
or face to face interviews and personally administered questionnaires.
Questionnaires were an efficient data collection mechanism because the researcher
knew exactly what was required and how to measure the variables of interest. The
justification for using triangulation was that it enabled the researcher to overcome the
advantages and disadvantages of the different modes of data collection and yet
ensure at least 90–100% response rate (Cavana et al., 2000). The structured
questionnaire is attached as per Appendix 3.1.
The permission to distribute questionnaires to the public service employees was
taken from the Manager Corporate Services of Public Service Commission, Ms
Salote Radrodro via a telephone conversation in June, 2005. Out of a sample of 100
questionnaires, 60 questionnaires for public service employees were distributed in
the training courses conducted at the Public Service Commission in Nasese with the
help of Mr Umesh Chand, who is the Manager, Workforce Training and
Development at the Centre for Public Service Training and Development (CPST&D)
in the last two weeks of July and first week of August, 2005. The training courses
were selected because employees from different divisions and ministries come to
attend training courses so this group would not only be diverse in terms of age,
gender and educational qualification but also representative of various public service
ministries. The remaining 40 questionnaires were distributed at the Head Office of
the Public Service Commission in Berkley Cresent with the assistance of Mr. Dinesh
Prakash who is the Administrative Officer. These questionnaires were hand
delivered to Mr Dinesh Prakash in the second week of July, 2005. The
questionnaires were randomly distributed within the different divisions at Public
Service. These questionnaires were then collected back in the second week of
August, 2005.
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The researcher devoted a lot of attention to questionnaire design because survey
using questionnaires is the most common method of collecting data. The principles
of questionnaire design relating to how the questions were worded and data
measured, and how the entire questionnaire was organized became of vital
importance in the research. To minimize respondent biases and measurement errors,
all the principles of questionnaire design was followed carefully. Questionnaires are
the most useful data collection method when large number of people are to be
reached, in this case a sample size of 400, which were located in different
geographical areas, targeting Central, Western and Northern divisions. According to
Cavana et al. (2000) when researchers use well validated instruments, the findings of
the study benefit the scientific community since the results can be replicated and
additions to the theory base made. Hair et al. (2003) pinpoints that these instruments
need measurement, implying that one must correctly measure the concepts being
examined. Otherwise, the interpretations and conclusions will not be accurate. With
this, the next section seeks to explain the process of questionnaire design in detail,
paying particular attention to how each section was designed and how the concepts
were measured.
3.3.1.1 Designing Questionnaires
Sound questionnaire design principles should focus on three areas. The first relates
to the wording of questions. The second refers to the planning issues–how variables
will be categorized, scaled and coded after receipt of the responses. The third
pertains to the general appearance of the questionnaire. All three are important
factors in questionnaire design because they can minimize biases in research (Cavana
et al., 2000; Hair et al., 2003). In this study, the researcher tried to pay particular
attention towards avoiding double-barrelled questions, ambiguous questions, leading
questions and loaded questions. The questionnaires were structured to gather
quantitative data and mostly consisted of closed questions so as to minimize the
respondents’ time in answering them and for prompt return for subsequent analysis
(Cavana et al., 2000; Hair et al., 2003). The advantage of employing closed
questions was that it was easier for both the researcher and the respondent. It was
easier for respondents to recognize a response rather than remember it and answers
are less variable and could be meaningfully compared and further assisted in coding
and analysis (Frazer and Lawley, 2000). These closed questions included nominal
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scale, dichotomous scale, numerical scale, interval scale–likert type, itemized scales
that is multichotomous scales. The scaled response questions was designed as a
likert scale with five categories. A likert scale is a measurement scale of agreement,
on five points varying from ‘strongly agree’ to strongly disagree’ (Frazer and Lawley,
2000). The last section of the questionnaire included open-ended questions to invite
respondents to make additional comments. Open-ended questions provide rich
information and insight into responses, but respondents need to be articulate and
willing to spend time giving a full answer. Therefore, this research used only five
open-ended questions towards the end of the questionnaire (Refer Appendix 3.1).
After the researcher decided on the type of questions to ask, that is closed and open
questions, the preliminary questionnaire structure was determined. Questions were
grouped by topic and placed in a logical order to build a sense of continuity. The
first six sections were close ended and the most important questions were placed in
these sections to retain the respondents’ interest. In the next section, the researcher
seeks to explain in detail the purpose of each of the sections in the questionnaire,
how the measurement techniques were employed and why certain scales were used
and how the concepts and variables were captured, that is with reference to materials
viewed that provided an in-depth understanding in designing variables and items of
the questionnaire.
Front Cover
The following features appeared on the front cover: A proper introduction disclosing
the researcher’s identity, department the researcher is from, and details of institution
was mentioned. The survey title and brief explanation and rationale of the study
were also given. Since, it was important to establish rapport with the respondents
and motivate them to respond to the questionnaire willingly and enthusiastically,
assuring confidentiality of the information provided by them and ensuring that all
information would be used for academic purposes only was outlined. Further on the
time taken to complete the questionnaire was mentioned and lastly the introduction
ended with a courteous note, thanking the respondents for taking the time to respond
to the survey. This front cover was designed by the researcher.
Section 1–Demographic Data
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This section was titled Personal Profile and the aim was to gather demographic data
of the respondents. The researcher preferred to elicit most of the personal
information at the very beginning. Cavana et al. (2000) says that researchers who
elicit personal details at the beginning do so because when respondents have
psychologically identified themselves with the questionnaire, then only do they feel
committed to respond. Nominal scale was used in this section (Refer Appendix 3.1).
Nominal scale uses numbers as labels to identify and classify objects (Hair et al.,
2003). Therefore, numbers were assigned to age, educational qualification, gender,
marital status, ethnicity, and job status. Educational qualification, ethnicity and job
status required listing with an option for ‘Others’ (Please specify) as a category. This
section was designed by referring to Cavana et al. (2000), Hair et al. (2003), and
Frazer and Lawley (2000).
Section 2–Corruption Data and Public Service Efficiency
The aim of this section was to gather the respondents’ views on corruption and
efficiency of public service delivery in Fiji. Questions 7 and 8 used dichotomous
scale to elicit a yes/no answer, while question 9 used a nominal scale. Question 10
aimed to gauge the effectiveness and responsiveness of public officials in interacting
with citizens. The main feature was to look at the time factor, the cost factor and
public red-tape procedures in service delivery. This question used numerical scale.
According to Cavana et al. (2000) numerical scale is a type of scale where numbers
on a five or seven point scale are provided, with bi-polar adjectives at either end.
The authors refer to this as an interval scale. In this question, a seven-point scale is
used with descriptions provided on both ends of the continuum (Refer Appendix 3.1).
This section was designed by the researcher.
Section 3–Awareness of eGovernance
This section seeks to ascertain the level of awareness of the citizens and also public
service employees on the issue of eGovernance. A dichotomous scale requiring a
yes/no answer was used (Refer Appendix 3.1). In this section if the answer to
question twelve is no, then it is entirely on the respondent, not to answer the
questions that follow, because if someone does not know about eGovernance, and
thinks that eGovernance cannot fight corruption, then he/she may not answer any
questions further. However, a person who is pessimistic that eGovernance cannot
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fight corruption may still proceed on to answering the questions by strongly
disagreeing with the items that follow. This section was designed by the researcher.
Section 4–Principal–agent
This section aims to ascertain whether using eGovernance/ICTs can alter agency
problems and fight corruption in public service delivery. This section consisted of
four questions: 13, 14, 15 and 16. Interval scale–likert type was used for all
questions in this section. According to Hair et al. (2003) and Cavana et al. (2000)
interval scale is a type of scale that uses numbers to rate objects. In this survey,
likert type scale was used to examine how strongly subjects agree or disagree with
the set of items on a five–point scale. Question 13 was based on the principal–agent
relationship and whether respondents ‘agree’ or ‘disagree’ that eGovernance can
alter principal–agent relationship. Question 14 aims to gauge the public sector and
governance motivating factors and pressure points for public services to develop and
implement eGovernance. Question 14 used a five point likert scale from ‘Low
Relevance’ to ‘High Relevance’. Question 15 seeks to understand the compelling
reasons for the public in Fiji to utilize eGovernance with respect to expectation of
gains and perceptions of real value from eGovernance. Question 15 used a five point
likert scale from ‘Low Expectation’ to ‘High Expectation’. Question 16 aims to
gauge the priority features that would make eGovernance application attractive in the
local context. Again five–point likert scale was used from ‘Low Priority’ to ‘High
Priority’. This section was designed by surveying a huge literature. Studies by
Mahmood (2004), Tangkitvanich (2003), Cisar (2003), Colby (2001), Chaurasia
(2003), Bhatnagar (2003, 2005), Prahalad (2005), Sarah (2003), Bassanini (2003),
Bowankar (2004), Kudo (2004), Cho and Choi (2004), Kang (2001), Ahmed (2004),
Panda et al. (2005), Kalia (2005), Raghuveer (2005), Jain and Ramani (2005), Fuliya
and Bansal (2005), Dash (2005), Yum (2003, 2005), Talero (2005), Dorotinsky
(2005), Yisheng (2002), Rose-Ackerman (1978, 1994) , Klitgaard (1988, 1995a,
1995b), and Vanssay et al. (2004) were cited and based on the principal–agent
framework with reference to eGovernance models this section was designed.
Section 5–eGovernance Model
This section seeks to ascertain the respondents views on how eGovernance models
can be applied in public service delivery to reduce agency problems and overall
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corruption. A set of variables had been developed showing the positive attributes of
the model and respondents were required to tick in their responses, that is whether
they favour or disfavour this model. This section consisted of 24 items and interval
scale–likert type was employed. Once again a five point scale from ‘Strongly
Disagree’ to ‘Strongly Agree’ was used (Refer Appendix 3.1). This section was
designed with reference to a number of studies. Forman (2005), Bowankar (2004),
Kudo (2004), Cho and Choi (2004), Kang (2001), Ahmed (2004), Panda et al. (2005),
Kalia (2005), Raghuveer (2005), Jain and Ramani (2005), Fuliya and Bansal (2005),
Dash (2005),Yum (2003,2005), Talero (2005), Dorotinsky (2005), Yisheng (2002),
Bradsher (2002) in Mahmood (2004), Bhatnagar (2003, 2005), Gordon (2004),
Harris (2004), Heeks (1999, 2001a), Keniston (2005), Kudo (2004), Vijay et al.
(2003) and Zinnbauer (2004).
Section 6–Corruption Reduction
This section seeks to ascertain the respondents’ views on their understanding of
reduced levels of corruption. Variables had been developed to show what less
corruption and greater transparency means with 14 items, which respondents were
required to tick, in terms of their perceived benefits of reduced corruption. Interval
scale–likert type was used. Five–point scale was used whereby 1 meant ‘Strongly
Disagree’ to 5 ‘Strongly Agree’. This section was designed by referring to the above
mentioned studies in Section 4 and 5 plus by viewing the work of Bardhan (1997)
cited in Camerer (1997), Toatu (2004), and Gani and Duncan (2004).
Section 7–Issues in eGovernance
This section contained 6 questions from questions 18–23. Question 18 was an
itemized rating scale (Refer Appendix 3.1). This is so because the list of issues was
given, the respondents had to check in their views by putting a tick. This question
was on the requirements of using eGovernance as a tool to fight corruption. This
question was designed by the researcher after consulting the work of Heeks (1998,
1999, 2001a), Budhirahja (2005) and Kalia (2005). Questions 19–23 were open–
ended questions and was designed by the researcher.
The last page had a message of thanks towards the end of the questionnaire. All the
sections are numbered from 1–7 with explanatory subheadings for each section.
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Questions were also numbered and Instructions were in Bold, all the check boxes
were coded and all pages were numbered.
3.4 Data Analysis After data was collected, the next step was to analyze data to test the research
hypotheses and answer specific research objectives. Since data analysis is now
routinely managed with software programs, SPSS software package was used.
Before, explaining how data will be analyzed and testing hypothesis, some
preliminary steps were to be completed. These steps help to prepare the data for
analysis ensuring that the data obtained are reasonably good. These four steps
according to Cavana et al. (2000) and Hair et al. (2003) are: getting ready for data
analysis, getting a feel for data, testing the goodness of data and testing the
hypotheses.
3.4.1 Getting Data Ready for Analysis
Since in this research, data was already coded and categorized and questionnaires
checked on the same day after being administered, editing was not a problem. Blank
responses to the questions, was not a problem for a sample of 300 citizens surveyed,
because it was self administered and all the respondents checked in their views.
However, for public service employees, who had not checked in all the items, a
medium value of the itemized interval scale was assigned, rather then ignoring this
blank response and reducing the sample size. According to Cavana et al. (2000) this
method was followed because out of majority of the items only in a few cases one or
two items were not filled in.
3.4.2 Coding
In this survey since all the six sections were closed questions and codes were
assigned and categorized, coding was not a problem.
3.4.3 Getting A Feel for Data
Data was entered in SPSS. The frequency distribution of the nominal variables of
interest which is demographic information (Section 1 of questionnaire As Per
Appendix 3.1), corruption data (Section 2 of questionnaire As Per Appendix 3.1),
awareness of eGovernance (Section 3 of questionnaire As Per Appendix 3.1), reasons
for using eGovernance and expectations (Question 14 and 15 of questionnaire As Per
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Appendix 3.1), and issues in eGovernance (Question 18 of questionnaire As per
Appendix 3.1) was obtained. In addition to the frequency distributions and the means
and standard deviations, it was helpful to know how the dependent and independent
variables in the study are related to each other. For this purpose, a correlation matrix
of these variables was obtained. According to Cavana et al. (2000) it is always
prudent to obtain [i] frequency distributions for the demographic variables, and [ii] a
correlation matrix of the variables irrespective of whether or not the hypothesis are
directly related to these analyses. The authors further stress that these statistics give
a feel for the data. Therefore, this research first conducted these basic tests then went
onto testing the goodness of data. The next section seeks to explain this process.
3.4.4 Testing Goodness of Data
In this the reliability and validity of the measures are tested. According to Cavana et
al. (2000), reliability indicates dependability, stability, predictability, consistency and
accuracy and refers to the extent to which a measuring procedure yields the same
results on related trials. Cronbach’s alpha is the most popular test for internal
consistency. Generally Nunnally (1978) cited in Cavana et al. (2000) and Hair et al.
(2003) suggest that as rule of thumb new developed measures can be accepted with
values >= 0.6, otherwise values >= 0.7 should be the threshold. With values >= 0.8,
the measure is very reliable.
3.4.5 Hypotheses Testing
Before going on to generate the hypotheses, it becomes prudent to understand the
theoretical framework. Theoretical framework discusses the interrelationships
among the concepts and/or variables that are deemed to be integral to the dynamics
of the situation being investigated. Developing this framework helped to formulate
research objectives, research questions and hypothesize and test certain relationships
through appropriate analyses (Cavana et al., 2000). For this study, the theoretical
framework is already explained in Chapter 1, and forms the basis of explaining the
variables which are categorized as: independent, dependent and intervening variables.
Therefore, since the theoretical foundations is already discussed, the theoretical
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model (figure 1.1) is shown again for the purpose of explaining the relationship
among the variables. This model is shown below:
In the diagram the unbroken line (b and c) depicts a direct relationship: by increasing
information to service users, the use of eGovernance cuts corruption directly. The
broken lines indicate indirect relationships: by cutting information asymmetry that
agents can exploit, the use of eGovernance cuts corruption. Instead of dealing with
principals who have little knowledge, service delivery agents are either bypassed by
principals using eGovernance based processes to help themselves or required to deal
with principals empowered by improved knowledge of service delivery processes.
3.4.5.1 Types of Variables
A variable is defined as a measurable unit in terms of subjective judgement or other
forms of measurement (Kumar, 1996). In this study there are three types of variables,
independent, dependent, and intervening variables.
Independent Variable
An independent variable is ‘the cause supposed to be responsible for bringing about
change(s) in a phenomenon or situation’ (Blaxter et al., 1996; Kumar, 1996: 51). In
this study the independent variable is eGovernance. This is so, because eGovernance
is supposed to bring about a change in principal–agent which will then lead to the
effect/outcome: ie: reduced corruption. The independent variables are measured in
Section 5.
Dependent Variable
The dependent variable is the variable of primary interest to the researcher. This is
the main variable that lends itself as a viable factor for investigation (Cavana et al.,
2000). The dependent variable is the ‘outcome or the effect of the change(s) brought
about by the independent variable’ (Kumar, 1996: 51). In this study the dependent
variable is reduced corruption. Overall, this research assesses the impact of
eGovernance
principal–agent corruption
reduction
b c
a
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eGovernance (independent variable) on reduced corruption (dependent variable) with
reference to the suggested theoretical model shown on page 67.
Intervening Variable
‘An intervening variable is one that surfaces between the time the independent
variables operate to influence the dependent variable and its impact on the dependent
variable’ (Cavana et al., 2000: 88). Cavana et al. (2000) states that an intervening
variable is a product of the independent variable and a cause of the dependent
variable. The authors further go on to say that it is a function of the independent
variable operating in any situation, and helps to conceptualize and explain the
influence of the independent variables on the dependent variable. For this study the
intervening variable is ‘principal–agent’, because it helps to explain the influence of
‘eGovernance’ (independent variable) on the outcome ‘corruption reduction’
(dependent variable). This is shown in the theorized model.
Based on the theoretical model, three hypotheses were generated for this study. The
following are the hypotheses and the tests called for.
Hypothesis One: eGovernance is positively related to principal–agent and
corruption reduction. The test used was Pearson’s coefficient correlation to test the
relationship between eGovernance, principal–agent and corruption reduction. The
pearson’s correlation measures the linear association between two metric variables. It
is a test to measure the strength of association between the variables. The
coefficients derived from the correlational analysis will give indication whether the
relationship between the three variables are positive, negative or no relation at all.
The values range from -1.00 to +1.00 (Hair et al., 2003; Cavana et al., 2000).
Hypothesis Two: Principal–agent is positively related to corruption reduction.
The test used was Pearson’s coefficient correlation to test the relationship between
principal–agent and corruption reduction. The significance of this test is already
explained above.
Hypothesis Three: Corruption reduction is dependent on principal–agent (is
related). Chi-square test was used to test this hypothesis. According to Cavana et al.
(2000), chi-square is a test for understanding the independence and dependence of
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the variables; that is whether the variables affect one another or not. To test this
whether the variables (corruption reduction and principal–agent) affect one another –
are dependent or independent (do not affect one another–meaning change in
principal–agent variable does not affect corruption reduction variable) the test was
used.
Hypothesis Four: The independent variable (eGovernance) will significantly
explain the variance in corruption reduction. Multiple regression analysis was used
to test this hypothesis. Multiple regression will help explain which factors
(independent variables–eGovernance or intervening factor–principal–agent) are
better predictors of Corruption reduction variable (dependent variable). Basically, it
will explain how much of a variance in corruption reduction can be explained by the
two variables that is independent and intervening. It will also give an indication of
the relative contribution of each of the variables (eGovernance; principal–agent).
For the four hypotheses, table 3.2 summarizes the measures as per Questionnaire in
Appendix 3.1.
Table 3.2: Hypothesis Testing and Constructs In Questionnaire
Hypotheses Tests Used Questions and Items In Questionnaire
Hypothesis One: eGovernance is positively related to principal–agent and corruption reduction. Hypothesis Two: Principal–agent is positively related to corruption reduction
Pearson’s coefficient correlation Pearson’s coefficient correlation
Section 4: Principal–agent is the intervening variable. Question 13; Items 1–13 Section 5: eGovernance is the independent variable. Question 17; Items 1–24 Section 6: Corruption reduction is the dependent variable. Question 18; Items 1–14. Section 4: Principal–agent is the intervening variable. Question 13; Items 1–13. Section 6: Corruption reduction is the dependent variable. Question 18; Items 1–14.
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Hypothesis Three: Corruption reduction is dependent on principal–agent (is related). Hypothesis Four: The independent variable (eGovernance) will significantly explain the variance in corruption reduction.
Chi-square test was used to test this hypothesis Multiple regression analysis was used to test this hypothesis.
Section 6: Corruption reduction Question 18; Items 1–14. Section 4: Principal–agent is the intervening variable. Question 13; Items 1-13 Section 5: eGovernance is the independent variable. Question 17; Items 1–24 Section 4: Principal–agent is the intervening variable. Question 13; Items 1–13 Section 6: Corruption reduction Question 18; Items 1–14.
The above mentioned tests were used for hypotheses testing using SPSS statistical
package. The tests used 1 per cent (0.01) significance level. The results of these
tests are discussed in detail in Chapter 4, of this study.
The quantitative approach using the survey enabled the researcher to gather the
opinions of diverse communities to ascertain their perception and levels of awareness
on the issue of eGovernance. The researcher had developed a set of indices from the
theoretical context and under each index listed a set of variables that would help
overcome principal–agent problems and reduce corruption in service delivery in Fiji.
By gathering the respondents’ views this helped test the hypotheses and gather the
perceived benefits and reasons that respondents felt why eGovernance was needed in
public service delivery in Fiji. This enabled the researcher to better understand
whether in the respondents’ view transparency, accountability and responsiveness
and reduced levels of corruption were the most highly rated options or not. After the
empirical results were generated, a qualitative approach was blended to supplement
the findings, case studies were prepared and a thorough evaluation followed.
3.5 Qualitative Approach 3.5.1 Case Study Approach
A case study is an ‘empirical enquiry that investigates a contemporary phenomena
within its real life context’ (Yin, 1988: 23; Budhwar and Budhwar, 1999).
Eisenhardt (1989) and Yin (1989) agree that case studies can be used to accomplish
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various aims: to provide description, test theory or generate theory, exploratory and
explanatory. These authors also agree that case studies can involve qualitative data
only, quantitative only, or both types of data.
The researcher has developed a model of hypothesized relationships, which was
illustrated and tested via the case method. Using the hypotheses derived from the
theory, the researcher attempted to test those hypotheses in the context of
eGovernance model as applied to the case study organization. The purposive sampling technique (Bouma, 2000: 121,122) was used to select one
public service delivery organization to carry out the case study on. The researcher,
here, is required to select ‘the best people or groups to be studied’. As Yin (1994:
36) points out, the intention of carrying out the case study is not to come to statistical
generalizations on public service delivery, which would require random sampling,
but to generalize ‘a particular set of results to some broader theory’, in this case
theory concerning eGovernance and corruption. The research attempts to prove or
disprove the hypothesis not only through quantitative measurement but also via
application to the case.
According to Yin (1994) and Eisenhardt (1989) it is recognized that quantitative data
would not always be able to provide full evidence in support of the main arguments.
Case method is used to obtain a rounded picture of a problem. It is the preferred
strategy when how questions are considered (Budhwar and Budhwar, 1999). The
study evaluated the potential of using ICTs for reducing corruption, and along with
this identified some of the limitations and restrictions. The case illustrated by
applying eGovernance models to show how eGovernance can alter principal–agent
relationship problems and identified how corruption could be reduced within the
system of interaction in public service delivery between the public official (agent)
and citizens (principal). The case study endeavoured in opening a new window of
opportunity for public sector organizations in unleashing the potential that ICT holds
in combating corruption leading towards a healthier socio-economic fabric where the
citizens of the country will not suffer the costs that corruption entails. By using
multiple sources of evidence (interviews, informal discussion and secondary sources)
the case study can serve as one of the most powerful research designs (Budhwar and
Budhwar, 1999).
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The public service organization tentatively selected for the case study was the
Ministry of Agriculture. In order to undertake the case study, a separate sample was
drawn from the population. The main purpose in doing a case study was to study the
role of agents in manipulating principals. However, the problem was that the
principals in Ministry of Agriculture were farmers, but in the sample of 400 selected
for this study, only 3 were farmers, so to draw my sample size from the 400 to
undertake a case study would not have been representative of the population. As a
result a separate sample was drawn of farmers only. Eastern (Tailevu and Naitasiri
Area), Western (Sigatoka, Nadi, Lautoka, Ba, Tavua and Rakiraki) and Northern
divisions (Bua) were randomly selected, and the list of farmers obtained from the
respective extension centres. From all the divisions, it was divided area wise, and
from respective areas a sample of 6 farmers each comprised the strata. Here
stratified random sampling was used. The following criterion was used for selecting
two detailed case studies (from sample size–60).
3.5.2 Case Study Selection Criteria
The five characteristics identified by the researcher served as the basis for selecting
cases:
1. Category of Respondents
Poor versus middle-level farmers–poor and middle-level farmers were unable
to pay bribes and as a result were prone to victimization and poor service.
Therefore the researcher chose to select two farmers (one poor farmer and the
other, a middle-level farmer).
2. Age group of farmers was between 26 and 39 (mostly farmers fell under this
age group).
3. Focus specifically on Eastern division (this division was chosen because of
the 3-tier bureaucratic relationship: farmer to extension to agriculture
ministry).
4. Poor and middle-level farmer – exploited as a result of lack of knowledge.
5. Difficulties experienced (from 3 poor farmers and 6 middle-level farmers in
Eastern division in 26–39 age group. The time factor, cost factor and
personal losses and hardship were analyzed to see which one particular poor
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farmer faced most hardships and which one particular middle-level farmer
faced hardships).
3.5.2.1 Sources of Data Collection
This study relied equally on the primary and secondary sources, which were face to
face interviews with primary document review and likewise on secondary document
review.
3.5.2.1.1 Primary Sources
3.5.2.1.1.1 Face to Face Interviews
Research was mainly conducted via structured as well as semi-structured face to face
interviews with public service officials (upper management as well as lower
management) and citizens (farmers) for the case study on the Ministry of Agriculture.
Gillham (2001: 65) cited in Narayan (2004: 9) states that ‘semi-structured interviews
can prove to be the richest single source of data in a case study research when done
well’.
Citizens (farmers) were included in the case study to determine their concerns and
views of the problems in public service delivery in the Ministry of Agriculture that
would not have been readily expressed by the interviewed public service employees.
The combination of interviews helped to extract factual information as perceived by
those on the receiving side of service delivery and those on the delivery side.
Appendices 3.3 and 3.4 show the interview list and interview questions for public
officials (delivery side) while Appendix 3.5 and 3.6 shows the list and questions for
farmers (receiving side). Before the interviews, the interviewees were assured that
the objective of the interview was to gather ‘perception of citizens and public
servants on public service delivery and agency problems that have led to a rise in
bribery’ and that all information provided will be used specifically for academic
research only and that their identity shall not be disclosed. For this purpose, the
thesis used pseudonyms (fictitious names) for all interviewees and all individuals
(particularly public service employees who view the system of service delivery as
slow and corrupt) and who were involved in the case study.55 Pseudonyms were very
55 Pseudonyms were used for those who were involved in the case study for ethical reasons, to ensure anonymity and for employment security.
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helpful as it encouraged freer outflow of responses. Most of the questions asked
were in an open-ended manner to allow ample time for the interviewees to respond
so that a rich source of field data could be generated (Narayan, 2004; Burns, 1996).
An important skill for qualitative researchers is the use of probes or follow-up
questions in a research interview (Maykut and Morehouse, 1994). Patton (1990:
238) defines probe as ‘an interview tool used to go deeper into the interview
responses’. Maykut and Morehouse (1994) pinpoint that by probing an interviewee’s
response, we are likely to add to the richness of the data and end up with a better
understanding of the phenomenon we are studying. Likewise, the researcher used
probes to encourage the interviewees to expand on their answers. For further
effectiveness in communication, elaboration and clarification probing responses were
used (Whetton and Cameron, 2002).
The issues selected for interviews revolved around: types of services offered,
problems in service delivery (access, delay, rules/procedures), agency problems
(corruption and bribery), and improving delivery of services. The aim of the
interviews were to extract information from interviewees about slow delivery and
bureaucratic delays which seek to escalate agency problems through rising
corruption and bribery in Fiji’s public service delivery, and specifically their
experiences and opinions towards agency problems of corruption and bribery and
commitment towards reducing this. These topics allowed the fulfilment of the reason
for this study expressed as Aims and Objectives in Chapter Two.
The timeframe for the interview ranged from one to a half hour in length. The
researcher’s main responsibility was to ensure that the respondent’s attention was
focused. Walsh (1995) says that by keeping in mind the interviewee’s convenience,
needs and interest level, response errors can be minimized. Some interviews were
tape recorded with back-up notes and then transcribed soon after the interview.
Qualitative researchers have taken quite extreme positions on whether it is
appropriate to audio-tape record an interview, ranging from ‘not tape recording
unless there are legal or training reasons for doing so’ (Lincoln and Guba, 1985: 272,
cited in Maykut and Morehouse, 1994: 98), to valuing the tape recorder as ‘part of
the indispensable equipment’ of the qualitative interviewer (Patton, 1990: 348, cited
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in Maykut and Morehouse, 1994: 98). Transcriptions are more reliable than having
to take notes, so the researcher is able to take part in the conversation without fear of
slowing down the interview process and distracting the interviewees (Burns, 1996).
However, interview notes were a useful supplement in cases where the interviewees
felt uncomfortable in having their answers taped, or where they did not give
permission to tape-record. Ethical considerations were kept in mind throughout the
duration of the research. Informants in this research were not forced to participate if
they refused to answer any questions or in any case if they decided to withhold any
information. Similarly, the confidentiality of the data disclosed was very important.
Here a clear understanding was reached between the researcher and the interviewee
concerning the use to be made of the data provided (Burns, 1996). At the end of the
interview, the interview findings were summarized to avoid any misinterpretation.
Whetton and Cameron (2002: 532) say that this ‘serves as a check on the accuracy of
the information you have just obtained: the interviewee can correct your impressions
if they seem to be in an error’. Further on, the informants were thanked for their time,
cooperation and thoughtful responses and ensured that their anonymity will be
protected in the final report. The feedback was crosschecked for similarity between
interviewees’ responses and with documents to improve the validity and reliability of
the data and findings.
Both primary and secondary documents were used for this research.
3.5.2.1.1.2 Primary and Secondary Document Sources
The primary documents referred to in the course of the study for the case study
include Ministerial speeches, parliamentary debates (Hansard Reports), and Auditor
General’s reports. The secondary sources used were: journal articles, textbooks,
newspapers and the internet (Refer Bibliography). Secondary sources of information
served as essential references for building up the analysis and consolidating a wide
range of arguments in the case study.
Firstly, the Internet has been a great source of information. As the researcher was
from Fiji and the study area was also the same, and due to the nature of the topic
(eGovernance) which was very new, substantial hard copy materials were not
available. Therefore, to download journal articles and latest work in the area of
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eGovernance heavy reliance was placed on the internet. Goddard and Melville in
their book titled Research Methodology highlight that journal articles are very
reliable as they are reflections of more recent work in comparison to text books and
as a result of the peer review process they are further refereed for validity and
usefulness. They see journal articles as top-up of new information (Goddard and
Melville, 2001: 20, cited in Narayan, 2004: 13). However, text books served as the
‘starting place for finding out about a new field’, in this case corruption, principal–
agent theory and eGovernance (Goddard and Melville, 2001: 20, cited in Narayan,
2004: 13). Therefore, journal articles and text books were referred to in the cases.
Additionally, newspapers were used to track down reliable information (Goddard and
Melville, 2001: 22, cited in Narayan, 2004: 14). The media also played an important
role in this research by disclosing the opinions and views of the general public and
revealing the corrupt policies and practices in service delivery with reference to the
cases. Goddard and Melville (2001: 15) cited in Narayan (2004: 14) caution that
with the rapid information explosion in the recent years, it is ‘virtually impossible to
read everything published in a particular field, …’, and Burns (1996: 374) says that
‘it is a poor study that uses only one source of evidence’. This research has therefore
used both primary and secondary sources of evidence. The use of multiple sources
narrows the limitations of gathering data from a single source and allows for
triangulation through converging lines of inquiry, improving the reliability and
validity of data and maintaining a chain of evidence that allowed the researcher to
interpret evidence in a meaningful manner (Burns, 1996).
3.5.3 The Recording, Verification and Analysis of Data
This research used classification of categories and data triangulation methods to
verify and analyze data. The tape recorded interviews were transcribed immediately
after the interview sessions. Corroborative statements in each interview transcript56
were highlighted while duplicate and extraneous materials were ignored. Confirming
and contradicting responses and statements made by interviewees were noted. After
initially reviewing all the transcripts, the researcher re-read the transcripts the second
time to highlight statements that were missed in the first reading. Following this, the
researcher went over all the primary documents and secondary documents to 56 Corroborative statements are known as substantive statements that included the jotted down notes and those that were transcribed from tapes.
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highlight relevant information for the case study. In addition, the researcher
categorized all information case-wise and also topic by topic by creating sub-
headings: types of services offered, problems in service delivery (access, delay,
rules/procedures), agency problems (corruption and bribery), and improving delivery
of services, and citizen interaction and corruption issues. Apart from grouping the
data, triangulation of data helped. Triangulation is ‘an indispensable tool in real
world enquiry’ (Burns, 1996: 324). It helped because trustworthiness of data was
important for this research. It provided a means of testing one source of information
against other sources. It further assisted in cross-validation (Burns, 1996). Above all
the greatest contribution has been in improving the quality of data and in
consequence the accuracy of findings. To analyze the data content analysis was used.
Relevant literature review was used in parallel with the primary data for drawing
implications for cases.
3.6 Scope and Research Limitations This section seeks to illuminate the limitations and intertwining factors associated
with the research methodology that could affect a comprehensive analysis of the
facts.
Firstly, all researchers suffer from prejudices and biasedness, and the researcher in
this study was no different. For this very reason, the researcher tried to keep an open
mind as much as possible throughout the research process. A balanced approach
blending both research methods, quantitative and qualitative were taken and data was
gathered from multiple sources. This was done to achieve a realistic outlook. It is
important to highlight that the researcher was well aware of the fact that depending
on the methodological approach taken and the interpretation and analysis of the
findings of any study by one researcher can always be challenged by another using a
different perspective (Anderson and Poole, 2001: 25; Burns, 1996: 11).
Similarly, the methodological framework used to conduct the research was not
without limits and problems. Perhaps the biggest hurdle experienced with the chosen
methodology was in blending the two approaches. After the hypothesis testing, one
case study was presented illustrating agency problems, bureaucratic delays, lack of
transparency and corrupt behavior. The main reason, however, why the two
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approaches was blended was to overcome the limitations of each approach
respectively and together in view of hypothesis testing, illustrate potential
applications of eGovernance in reducing principal–agent problems and overall
corruption in service delivery. This more so gives the reader a picture of the
principal–agent interaction and problems within the real–life context. The sample
size was limited to Fiji only and therefore can not be generalized to other Pacific
Island Countries. Adding on, the researcher acknowledges that administering
questionnaires had been a tiring and time consuming task, because it was personally
administered, a deliberate choice of method to achieve a 90–100 per cent response
rate. It had been a great task in trying to achieve all the hallmarks of scientific
research with quantitative analyses. Given the usable sample size of 400, correlation,
regression and chi-square tests were appropriate for exploring structural relationships
between the variables in the study. This research was not a causal model and
causality therefore could not be assumed as to achieve this end would have required
gathering data from a much larger sample. Another hurdle in this study was in
getting information from respondents especially public service employees, many of
whom were quite reluctant to comment on the role that eGovernance can play in
improving service delivery and fighting corruption in Fiji. Many declined to
cooperate, which was a source of great frustration. However, there were a few
officials who did cooperate.
The third hurdle was in generating qualitative data for the case study. The case study
was designed from primary and secondary document sources and was based on
interview findings. Due to security and employment concerns, interviewees were
hesitant in revealing information. Additionally, the time limit for this study was
taken into account when undertaking the research work. Primary and secondary
document review and literature review ceased in October, 2005, while data collection
(interviews) for cases ended in October, 2005. There could have been further
developments after these dates.
3.7 Conclusion A simple methodical framework had been devised to develop various arguments and
perspectives relating to the research objective and problem. It is evident that
whatever framework was used would not be without basic flaws due to the nature of
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the discipline under investigation. An overall research methodology was constituted,
and the main focus was to devise an approach that could advance precision,
practicality and affordability in order to produce a comprehensive analysis. On the
other hand, one can see from the foregoing discussion that there exists no single,
complete and impeccable method, especially when facing the challenge of assessing
the impact of eGovernance in reducing corruption for public service delivery in Fiji.
The next chapter presents the results and analyses from the questionnaire survey.
Chapter 4
Data Analysis and Result Interpretation
4.1 Introduction This chapter presents the findings uncovered from the survey conducted in this study.
The first section shows the demographic profile of the respondents and highlights the
views on corruption and the level of effectiveness and responsiveness in public
service delivery. The second section looks at the awareness level of eGovernance
and converses the results of hypothesis testing. The third section presents the
reasons for using eGovernance in terms of motivating factors; evaluates the issues,
challenges and barriers; and pinpoints the drivers for successfully employing
eGovernance as a tool for reducing corruption.
4.2 Demographic Profile of the Sample A profile of the sample is presented in Table 4.1. As indicated in Chapter 3, the
distribution of the sample is justifiable as the right proportion of each stratum is
obtained. A sample size of 400 was selected for this research. Of the 400
respondents, 100 came from the Central division, 100 from Western and 100 from
Northern division. The remaining 100 were public officials. In terms of gender, 211
were females and 189 were male respondents. In terms of ethnicity the sample
consists of 198 Indigenous Fijians, 171 Indo-Fijians and 31 from other races. The
marital status of the respondents indicate that 49.3 percent (197) were married, 37.5
percent (150) were single and 13.3 percent (53) fell under others; that is they were
either divorced or separated. As revealed in Table 4.1, about 40 percent of the total
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respondents were under 25 (158 respondents), 46 percent were between the age of
26-39 (183 respondents) and around 15 percent were over 40 (59 respondents). The
education level of the respondents in this survey show that 66 out of the 400 had
primary education level, 79 had secondary, 176 had university degree, 38 had
professional qualification and 41 had other types of qualification (such as diplomas,
certificates and trade). From the sample of 400 in which 100 were public officials,
14 respondents were from top management, 32 were from middle management, 35
were from first level supervisors and 19 fell under Others. On the contrary, the job
status for citizens indicates that 11 were businessmen, 27 were teachers, 4 were
unemployed, 20 were housewives, 2 were church leaders, 7 were from chiefly status,
7 were politicians, 31 were students, and 191 fell under other job descriptions.
Table 4.1: Socio-Demographics of the Sample (N = 400)
1.0 Division [N=300] Count 2.0 Gender Count
Central 100 Male 189 Western 100 Female 211 Northern 100 3.0 Ethnicity Count 4.0 Marital Status Count
Indigenous Fijian 198 Married 197 Indo-Fijian 171 Single 150 Other Races 31 Others (Separated/Divorced) 53
5.0 Age of Respondents Count 6.0 Education Level Count
Under 25 years 158 Primary 66 26-39 years 183 Secondary 79 Over 40 years 59 University Degree 176 Professional Qualification 38 Others 41 6.0(a) Job Status 6.0 (b) Job Status (Public officials)[N=100] Count (Citizens)[N=300] Count Top Management 14 Businessmen 11 Middle Management 32 Teacher 27 First Level Supervisor 35 Unemployed 4 Others 19 Housewives 20 Church Leader 2 Chiefly Status 7 Politicians 7 Students 31 Others 191
4.3 View on Public Service Corruption in Fiji
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Respondents were asked ‘Q7: Do you think corruption in Fiji’s public sector is
increasing?’. Of the 400 respondents, 80.5 percent (322) said that corruption was
increasing, while 19.5 percent (78) of the respondents felt otherwise ( see table 4.2). Table 4.2: View on Public Service Corruption In Fiji
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent
Valid Yes 322 80.5 80.5 80.5 No 78 19.5 19.5 100.0 Total 400 100.0 100.0
Question 8 was, ‘Indicate whether in your view bureaucratic corruption is
increasing?’. In line with the above findings, 80.5 percent (322 respondents) view
that bribery and bureaucratic corruption was on the rise, while 19.5 percent (78
respondents) felt otherwise. This is shown in Table 4.3.
Table 4.3: View On Bureaucratic Corruption Increasing in Public Service Delivery
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent
Valid Yes 322 80.5 80.5 80.5 No 78 19.5 19.5 100.0 Total 400 100.0 100.0
In addition, respondents who felt that bribery in public service delivery was
increasing were asked to answer Question 9, in which they were asked to ‘Rate Fiji’s
public service delivery’. Of the 400 respondents, 34 percent rated Fiji’s corruption in
service delivery to be ‘Fairly High’, while 46.5 percent rated corruption to be ‘Very
High’. Six percent had rated corruption as ‘Low’ and 13.5 percent had rated it as
‘Fairly Low’. The data for corruption is illustrated in Table 4.4.
Table 4.4: Rating Public Service Corruption
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent Valid Low Corruption 24 6.0 6.0 6.0 Fairly Low
Corruption 54 13.5 13.5 19.5
Fairly High Corruption 136 34.0 34.0 53.5
Very High Corruption 186 46.5 46.5 100.0
Total 400 100.0 100.0
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It is revealed through the survey findings of this research that not only is corruption
increasing in the public sector, but bribery and petty corruption seems to be on the
verge of increasing and majority of the respondents have rated corruption as ‘High’
in public service delivery. These survey findings confirm the studies conducted by
Fiji Law Reform Commission (2003), Gani and Duncan (2004), National Integrity
Systems Country Study Report (2001, 2004), Auditor General Reports (1999, 2000,
2001, 2002), USP Beat (2002) and Naidu and Barr (2002) in which it was reflected
that corruption and bad governance is not only increasing in Fiji but is highly rated
amongst citizens.
4.4 Effectiveness and Responsiveness of Public Officials In
Interacting With Citizens
Public service delivery is crucial and it is very important to elucidate the
effectiveness and responsiveness of public officials in dealing with citizens in Fiji.
In this regard, the time factor, the cost factor and procedures followed in dealing with
public service delivery plays a vital role. This is gauged and the data are presented in
the following tables.
It is shown in Table 4.5, that 38.5 percent (154 of 400 respondents) ‘Totally Agree’
that the time factor in dealing with public service delivery was a major bottleneck
and cause of people’s dissatisfaction. Thirty nine percent (156) ‘Mostly Agree’ with
the above fact, and a further 3.5 percent (14) ‘Somewhat Agree’. However, for 2.3
percent (9) of the respondents, the time factor ‘Makes No Difference’. On the
contrary, 2.5 percent (10) of the respondents ‘Totally Agree’ in their view that the
time factor in dealing with public service delivery was not important because service
delivery response was timely and efficient. 9.5 percent (38) ‘Mostly Agree’ with the
above, and 4.8 percent (19) ‘Somewhat Agree’. Table 4.5: Time Factor in Dealing With Public Service Delivery
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent Valid Time Is Not A Problem-
Totally Agree 10 2.5 2.5 2.5
Time Is Not A Problem-Mostly Agree
38 9.5 9.5 12.0
Time Is Not A Problem-Somewhat Agree
19 4.8 4.8 16.8
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Time Factor-Makes No Difference
9 2.3 2.3 19.0
Time Is A Problem-Somewhat Agree
14 3.5 3.5 22.5
Time Is A Problem-Mostly Agree
156 39.0 39.0 61.5
Time Is A Problem-Totally Agree
154 38.5 38.5 100.0
Total 400 100.0 100.0
The cost factor (including corruption) in the public’s dealing with public service
offices is illustrated in Table 4.6 below. The data presented shows that a large
percentage of respondents - 38.3 percent (153) ‘Totally Agree’ and 39.3 percent
(157) ‘Mostly Agree’ that the cost factor was a major problem due to excessive
centralization, corruption and favouritism in service delivery. The remaining 3.5
percent (14) ‘Somewhat Agree’. According to 2.3 percent (9) of the respondents cost
factor ‘Makes No Difference’. On the other hand, 2.5 percent (10) of the
respondents ‘Totally Agree’, 9.5 percent (38) respondents ‘Mostly Agree’ and 4.8
percent (19) ‘Somewhat Agree’ that the cost factor was not relevant due to
decentralization, equity and absence of corruption in service delivery. Table 4.6: Cost Factor in Dealing With Public Service Delivery
Frequency Percent Valid
Percent Cumulative
Percent Valid Cost Factor Is Not
Relevant-Totally Agree 10 2.5 2.5 2.5
Cost Factor Is Not Relevant-Mostly Agree
38 9.5 9.5 12.0
Cost Factor Is Not Relevant-Somewhat Agree
19 4.8 4.8 16.8
Cost Factor In Service Delivery-Makes No Difference
9 2.3 2.3 19.0
Cost Factor Is A Major Bottleneck-Somewhat Agree
14 3.5 3.5 22.5
Cost Factor Is A Major Bottleneck-Mostly Agree
157 39.3 39.3 61.8
Cost Factor Is A Major Bottleneck-Totally Agree
153 38.3 38.3 100.0
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Total 400 100.0 100.0
The data presented in Table 4.7 on page 85 shows that public red-tape procedures
involve more than one agency and have more than one step and illustrates whether
there is an initiative of citizen-centred government with one-stop shop for these types
of services or whether these procedures were a major problem due to centralization.
It is revealed from the survey that 38.3 percent of the respondents ‘Totally Agree’
that public red tape procedures was a major problem due to excessive centralization,
corruption and favoritism and 39.3 percent ‘Mostly Agree’, while 3.5 percent
‘Somewhat Agree’. The interesting issue to note, is that in the opinion of 2.3 percent
of respondents, public procedures ‘Makes No Difference’. In contrast, 2.5 percent
‘Totally Agree’ that public red-tape procedures was not a problem because there was
initiative of one-stop shop services, while 9.5 percent ‘Mostly Agree’ and 4.8 percent
‘Somewhat Agree’. Hence, the survey confirms that time factor, cost factor and
public red-tape procedures are a major problem in Fiji in service delivery because of
excessive centralization, corruption and favouritism, therefore is a cause of major
bottleneck and people’s dissatisfaction. This was revealed also in National Integrity
Systems Country Report (2001, 2004) and Fiji Law Reform Commission (2003)
research.
Table 4.7: Public Red Tape Procedures Involving More Than One Agency and More Than One Step
Frequency Percent Valid
Percent Cumulative
Percent Valid Public Red-tape Procedures Is
Not Problem-Totally Agree
10 2.5 2.5 2.5
Public Red-tape Procedures Is Not Problem-Mostly Agree
38 9.5 9.5 12.0
Public Red-tape Procedures Is Not Problem-Somewhat Agree 19 4.8 4.8 16.8
Public Red-tape Procedures- Makes No Difference
9 2.3 2.3 19.0
Public Red-tape Procedures Is A Major Problem-Somewhat Agree 14 3.5 3.5 22.5
Public Red-tape Procedures Is A Major Problem-Mostly Agree
157 39.3 39.3 61.8
- 86 -
Public Red-tape Procedures Is A Major Problem-Totally Agree
153 38.3 38.3 100.0
Total 400 100.0 100.0
4.5 Awareness of eGovernance Question 11 required respondents to answer ‘Are you aware of eGovernance?’. In
terms of the awareness level of respondents on the issue of eGovernance, 66 percent
were aware and 34 percent were not aware of the issue. This is shown in Table 4.8
on the next page. Table 4.8: Awareness Level of eGovernance
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent Valid Yes 264 66.0 66.0 66.0 No 136 34.0 34.0 100.0 Total 400 100.0 100.0
In asking the respondents on their view on ICTs/eGovernance in reducing public
sector corruption, 63.3 percent felt that ICTs/eGovernance can reduce public sector
corruption, and in contrast, 36.8 percent felt otherwise. This is shown in table 4.9.
Table 4.9: View on ICT/eGovernance Curbing Public Sector Corruption
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent Valid Yes 253 63.3 63.3 63.3 No 147 36.8 36.8 100.0 Total 400 100.0 100.0
4.6 Hypotheses Testing Before carrying out hypothesis testing, a reliability test of the constructs was carried
out to produce Cronbach’s coefficient alpha. Using SPSS software, reliability tests
for internal consistency using Cronbach’s alpha as shown in Table 4.10 was carried
out. According to the reliability test in Table 4.10, it can be seen that the
standardized item alpha scores for each variable reaches acceptable scores as all
alpha values are above 0.9. Consequently, the internal consistency reliability of the
survey instrument and the variables were determined to be reliable.
Table 4.10: Reliability Test Scores
- 87 -
Construct Cronbach’s coefficient alpha
eGovernance 0.998
Principal–agent 0.982
Corruption reduction 1.0
4.6.1 Hypothesis 1: (H1) eGovernance is positively related to principal–agent and
corruption reduction.
Table 4.11: Hypothesis 1 Results - Correlations
eGovernance Principal–
agent Corruption reduction
eGovernance Pearson Correlation 1 0.878(**) 0.995(**) Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 N
400 400 400
Principal–agent Pearson Correlation 0.878(**) 1 Sig. (2-tailed) .000 N
400 400
Corruption reduction
Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N
0.995(**) .000 400
1
400
** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). The bivariate correlations test computes Pearson’s correlation coefficient.
Correlations measure how variables are related. Pearson’s correlation coefficient is a
measure of linear association. Analyzing data from the above table indicates that
eGovernance and principal–agent are significantly correlated (0.878) and significant
at the 0.01 level (p < 0.01). It indicates a strong or large linear association between
eGovernance and principal–agent. Coefficient of determination: r = 0.878 * 0.878 =
0.770884. It indicates 77.09 percent shared variance. eGovernance helps to explain
nearly 77.09 percent of the variance in principal–agent.
eGovernance and corruption reduction has the highest correlation coefficient (0.995)
and is significant at the 0.01 level (p < 0.01). It indicates a very strong linear
- 88 -
association between eGovernance and corruption reduction. Coefficient of
determination: r = 0.995* 0.995 = 0.990025. It indicates 99.03 percent shared
variance. eGovernance helps to explain nearly 99.03 percent of the variance in
corruption reduction. Therefore, the results support H1.
4.6.2 Hypothesis 2: (H2) Principal–agent is positively related to corruption
reduction. Table 4.12: Hypothesis 2 Results - Correlations
Principal–
agent Corruption reduction Principal–agent Pearson Correlation 1 0.867(**) Sig. (2-tailed) .000 N 400 400 Corruption reduction
Pearson Correlation
0.867(**)
1
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 N 400 400
** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). Analyzing data from the table indicates that principal–agent and corruption reduction
are significantly correlated (0.867) and significant at the 0.01 level (p < 0.01). It
indicates a strong or large linear association between principal–agent and corruption
reduction. Coefficient of determination: r = 0.867 * 0.867 = 0.751689 which is equal
to 75.17 percent shared variance. Therefore, principal–agent helps to explain nearly
75.17 percent of the variance in corruption reduction. The results support H2.
4.6.3 Hypothesis 3: (H3) Corruption reduction is dependent on principal–agent (is
related). This hypothesis was developed to assess whether corruption reduction (cronbach’s
alpha 1.0) is dependent on principal–agent. To test this hypothesis, chi–square test
of independence was carried out with the help of SPSS 12. The importance of chi–
square is that it intends to identify whether the perceived findings are real or a result
- 89 -
of sampling error. With reference to H3, it is expected that principal–agent would
have an impact on corruption reduction. The output for the test is shown in table
4.13.
Table 4.13: Hypothesis 3 Results – Chi Square Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-sided)
Pearson Chi-Square 462.904 21 .000**
N of Valid Cases 400
** Hypothesis Accepted at < 0.05 A chi–square test of independence between corruption reduction and principal–agent
indicates that the variables are dependent on each other as chi–square = 462.904 with
p value 0.000 < 0.05. Therefore, this result supports H3. Corruption reduction
depends on and is influenced by principal–agent, so a change in principal–agent
leads to corruption reduction.
4.6.4 Hypothesis Four (H4)
Hypothesis 4: (H4) The independent variable (eGovernance) will significantly
explain the variance in corruption reduction.
To test H4, multiple regression test was carried out with the help of SPSS 12. The
dependent variable was corruption reduction and the independent variables were
principal–agent and eGovernance.
Table 4.14: Regression Results for H4 - Coefficients
Model Unstandardized
Coefficients Standardized Coefficients t Sig (b).
B Std. Error Beta 1 (Constant) .008 .002 3.535 .000 Principal–agent -.023 .008 -.030 -2.990 .003 eGovernance 1.729 .017 1.022 102.506 .000
a. Dependent variable: Corruption reduction b. Adjusted r square = 0.991 From the above regression output (see Table 4.14), the equation will be:
Corruption reduction = 0.008 + -0.23 (principal–agent) + 1.729 (eGovernance)
- 90 -
eGovernance contributes highest towards corruption reduction with the coefficient
being 1.729 (beta value is 1.022 and t value is 102.506), which is significant (p =
0.000 < 0.05). This means that this variable makes the strongest unique contribution
to explaining the dependent variable–corruption reduction, when the variance
explained by all other variables in the model is controlled for. Principal–agent also
contributes towards corruption reduction as its coefficient is -0.23 (beta value is -
0.30 and t value is -2.990), which is significant (p = 0.003 < 0.05). In this case the
adjusted r square is 0.991, hence the model has accounted for 99.1 percent of the
variance in the corruption reduction variable. The results support H4.
4.7 Motivating Factors Meaningful eGovernance is eGovernance that responds to and supports compelling
and priority public sector reform, good governance and development goals as
identified by national stakeholders and, particularly in the case of public officials to
citizen services, with citizen input. This section seeks to identify those motivating
factors and ‘pressure points’ that should drive overall good governance goals from
the perspective of internal public service operations, as well as public service to
citizen and business interactions (Question 14 In Questionnaire). The assessment of
the relevance of 11 key issues as real drivers, and pressure points related to internal
service operations is given in Table 4.15 on page 91.
- 91
-
Tab
le 4
.15:
Mot
ivat
ing
Fact
ors a
nd P
ress
ure
Poin
ts fo
r U
sing
eG
over
nanc
e in
Fiji
– R
espo
nden
t Ass
essm
ent
Fr
eque
ncy
on S
cale
Fa
ctor
s Lo
w R
elev
ance
M
ediu
m-L
ow
Rel
evan
ce
Med
ium
Rel
evan
ce
Med
ium
-Hig
h R
elev
ance
H
igh
Rel
evan
ce
Impr
ovin
g in
form
atio
n ba
se fo
r dec
isio
n m
akin
g 92
53
27
16
0 68
Impr
ovin
g co
mm
unic
atio
n be
twee
n th
e po
litic
al a
nd
adm
inis
trativ
e pr
oces
s
56
88
79
11
8 59
Inte
rnal
com
mun
icat
ion
(info
rmat
ion
flow
) 62
71
67
14
6 54
Hav
ing
inte
grat
ed
info
rmat
ion
syst
ems
45
92
91
144
28
Rec
ord
keep
ing,
sear
ch
and
arch
ivin
g 57
87
30
16
0 66
Free
dom
of i
nfor
mat
ion
data
51
93
10
4 11
0 42
Inte
r-de
partm
enta
l co
ordi
natio
n an
d co
oper
atio
n da
ta
89
55
35
15
2 69
Impr
ovin
g ef
ficie
ncy
and
effe
ctiv
enes
s 96
48
60
12
8
68
Incr
ease
pub
lic se
rvic
e fle
xibi
lity
55
82
52
13
7
74
Incr
ease
pub
lic sa
fety
63
85
86
13
0 36
C
ost s
avin
gs
55
83
62
154
46
- 92 -
Looking at issue 1 it can be seen that 92 of the 400 respondents rate ‘Improving
information base for decision making’ as ‘Low Relevance’, 53 as ‘Medium-Low
Relevance’, and 27 as ‘Medium Relevance’. The majority of the respondents (160)
consider issue 1 to be of ‘Medium-High Relevance’ while 68 see it as of ‘High
Relevance’. It can be said that eGovernance provides an effective mechanism
whereby information for making decisions can be kept/stored and later on be used for
policy making purposes. This was highlighted in a recent paper presented at the
Global Challenges for eDevelopment by Rahman and Naz (2005) on ‘Digital Divide
Within Society: An Account of Poverty, Community and eGovernance’. eGovernance
is said to be a vehicle for processing required information to facilitate effective
decision making. ICTs serve as a crucial element for processing quality digitalized
data that empower people’s knowledge and confidence in taking action based on
facts. In contrast, absence of the supportive infrastructure for effective and efficient
information systems will only produce poor quality data that cannot be relied upon
for decision making (Toland and Purcell, 2002). This is the challenge in Fiji. The
poor quality of statistical data is detrimental to policy makers’ critical role of making
informed decisions on issues that affect the lives of those that are socially and
economically marginalized. The focus of eGovernance has to be on the rural
community, the poor, and the disadvantaged/marginalized sections of society.
eGovernance opens up possibilities for access. It ensures that citizens can participate
in and influence decision making processes that affect them closely. Citizens no
longer remain passive recipients of governance services provided to them, but can
proactively decide the types and standards of governance services they want and the
governance structures that can best deliver them.
The second issue of ‘Improving communication between the political and
administrative processes’ in Table 4.15 reveals that 56 of the respondents rate the
issue as ‘Low Relevance’, 88 as ‘Medium-Low Relevance’, and 79 as ‘Medium
Relevance’. Overall 118 respondents rate it as ‘Medium-High Relevance’ and 59 as
‘High Relevance’. This issue is also important as eGovernance can provide an
opportunity for enhancing communication flow between parties and improve
administrative processes once again for decision makers. This was also highlighted
in the paper by Rahman and Naz (2005). eGovernance can support self-organizing
networks, which are said to be increasingly important in governing industrial
- 93 -
democracies. In this view, the Fiji Government is only one of many interdependent
actors in a policy network, and greater attention to network approaches can restore
trust and confidence in policy making. This open, bottom-up, participatory networks
have shown their strength in leading to greater citizen engagement in many studies
(Refer to Literature in Chapter 2) and can do the same for Fiji citizens.
Another feature/issue is ‘Internal communication’ (Information flows). This issue
was rated as ‘Low Relevance’ by 62 respondents, ‘Medium-Low Relevance’ by 71
respondents, and ‘Medium Relevance’ by 67 respondents respectively. Overall 146
of the 400 respondents view this issue as of ‘Medium-High Relevance’ while 54
consider is to be of ‘High Relevance’. It can be noted that eGovernance has the
ability to improve information flows and so is seen by majority of respondents to be
a pressure point for employing it. This is so, because as everything becomes
integrated into a database, data management not only becomes easier, but data
sharing and free flow of information takes place over intranet within agencies. This
is further substantiated by Toland and Purcell (2002) and Wescott (2003) studies.
The fourth issue is ‘Having integrated information systems’. Forty-five respondents
gave ‘Low Relevance’ rating, 92 as ‘Medium-Low Relevance’, and 91 as ‘Medium
Relevance’. Overall 144 respondents consider this issue to be of ‘Medium-High
Relevance’ and finally 28 have rated it as ‘High Relevance’. Integrated information
systems have the potential for collecting, analyzing, storing, and retrieving all
information connected to public service management. It can allow public agencies to
file information in a more structured way, to resubmit them in a more useful format
to the concerned persons, irrespective of time and location of information. Since all
information filed is immediately available for consultation, all problems linked to the
use of paper-based citizen’s folders are eliminated. The citizen’s folder represents a
central element of Integrated Information Systems where all information related to
the citizen is integrated. Therefore, currently available information and
communication technologies (eGovernance) enables the integration of information
and services into a single structure irrespective of its physical location in the network
for the completion of their tasks. In the Information network, the architecture of the
network successfully supports the information flow, which takes place inside the
organization. The introduction of a computer system for communication- increases
- 94 -
the number of ways for accessing information and the quantity of available
information, and aids in redistributing them where required. Further on, networking
not only allows information exchange within and between departments and agencies
but it also improves internal information flow and communication between political
parties (Toland and Purcell, 2002; Wescott, 2003; O’Brien, 1999). Hence, the reason
for rating this issue within the range of ‘Medium’ to ‘High’.
Looking at issue 5, ‘Record Keeping, Search and Archiving’, 57 respondents have
rated ‘Low Relevance’, 87 as ‘Medium-Low Relevance’, and 30 as ‘Medium
Relevance’. The remaining 160 respondents have given a rating of ‘Medium-High
Relevance’ and 66 have given ‘High Relevance’ ratings. eGovernance also provides
better record keeping through information systems, and therefore searches can be
made quickly via databases that are linked through intranets. This can be a driving
force behind respondents giving high ratings because in Fiji, record keeping, search
and archiving is a problem. This has been numerously highlighted and reflected in
surveys by Wescott (2003), Toland and Purcell (2002), and United Nations
Economic And Social Commission For Asia And The Pacific (2004). These surveys
reveal that the efficient management of records—parliamentary records and the
records of government departments and land titles offices—is a critical aspect of
good governance, although sadly lacking in Pacific Island economies.
Further on, Issue 6, ‘Freedom of information data’ shows that 51 respondents have
‘Low Relevance’, 93 have ‘Medium-Low Relevance’, 104 have ‘Medium
Relevance’ and 110 have ‘Medium-High relevance’. Overall 42 have ‘High
Relevance’. The majority of the respondents have once again rated this issue highly.
The rationale for this is rooted simply in the concept of open and transparent
government. Freedom of information data has been seen as capable of advancing a
number of desirable objectives in any society. In the first place, it helps to make the
government more accountable to the people being governed. Secondly, by
facilitating the acquisition of knowledge, it encourages self-fulfilment. Thirdly, it
acts as a weapon in the fight against corruption and abuse of power by state
functionaries. Fourthly, it contributes to improving the quality of official decision-
making. Fifthly, it enhances the participatory nature of democracy. Sixthly, it goes
some way in redressing the inherent balance in power between the citizen and the
- 95 -
state, and strengthens the hand of the individual in his dealings with government.
Freedom of information data has clearly played an important role in enhancing
public accountability and transparency in government. Despite the limited
experience of their use worldwide, there can be little doubt that they have, over the
years, proved their worth as a valuable aid to integrity in public life (Iyer, 2000).
From the results of Issue 7, ‘Inter-departmental coordination and cooperation data’, it
is reflected that 89 of the respondents have ‘Low Relevance’, 55 have ‘Medium-Low
Relevance’, and 35 have ‘Medium Relevance’. Overall 152 of the respondents have
‘Medium-High Relevance’ and 69 have ‘High Relevance’. The data for this issue is
in line with Toland and Purcell (2002) and ESCAP (2004) research where the role of
eGovernance was highlighted as assisting in inter-departmental coordination and
cooperation.
As noted in Table 4.15 on Issue 8, ‘Improving efficiency and effectiveness’, 96
respondents have ‘Low Relevance’, 48 have ‘Medium-Low Relevance’, and 60 have
‘Medium Relevance’. The majority that is, 128 have ‘Medium-High Relevance’ and
68 have ‘High Relevance’. The majority of respondents have high rating for using
eGovernance as a tool for improving efficiency and effectiveness. This issue was
raised as a motivating factor in Toland and Purcell (2002) and Wescott (2003)
findings.
The ninth issue, ‘Increase public service flexibility’, reflects that 55 respondents have
‘Low Relevance’, 82 have ‘Medium-Low Relevance’, and 52 have ‘Medium
Relevance’. Overall 137 of the respondents have ‘Medium-High Relevance’, and 74
have ‘High Relevance’. Hence, the results are confirmed and in line with findings of
ESCAP (2004), Fiji Country Report (2005) and Kiran (2003). These findings
revealed that one of the main factors behind employing eGovernance in Fiji is to
increase public service flexibility and enhance service delivery to achieve maximum
customer satisfaction.
The second last issue shown in Table 4.15 was ‘Increase public safety’, in which 63
respondents have ‘Low Relevance’, 85 have ‘Medium-Low Relevance’, 86 have
‘Medium Relevance’, 130 have ‘Medium-High Relevance’ and 36 have ‘High
Relevance’. By analyzing this data on public safety it can envisaged that
- 96 -
eGovernance for public safety is critical as many citizens in the process of public
service delivery have experienced much harassment and dissatisfaction through
bureaucratic delays, which then tends to lead to compounding corruption. Therefore
eGovernance is seen as a pressure point that can increase public safety because
citizens will no longer need to rely on public officials, but instead can transact online
themselves. This is supported by Sarah’s (2003) findings.
The last issue was on ‘Cost savings’. It is revealed that 55 had ‘Low Relevance’, 83
have ‘Medium-Low Relevance’, 62 have ‘Medium Relevance’, 154 have ‘Medium-
High Relevance’ and 46 have ‘High Relevance’. eGovernance can lead to cost
savings have been highlighted in a number of surveys in Fiji especially research by
Wescott (2003), ESCAP (2004) and Fiji Country Report (2005).
4.8 Compelling Reasons for the Public Services to Develop and
Implement eGovernance One of the primary dimensions of eGovernance is public service to
citizens/businesses (and vice versa) services and interactions. This form of
eGovernance is meaningful to the extent that it responds to real governance and
public service needs and priorities from the citizen and/or business perspective. In
this section, the researcher will identify the main governance and public sector
reform expectations of citizens and businesses.
Expectations of Gains and Perceptions of Real Value
The gains of perceived value consisted of 9 Items (Question 15). Item 1 was
Transparency and Accountability. Item 2 was Increased Opportunity for
Participation In Policy Making and Implementation, Item 3 was Visible Impact of
Feedback, Item 4 was Access to Information, Item 5 was Access to Services (Public
Service), Item 6 was Governments Efforts to Bridge the Digital Divide, Item 7 was
Citizen Centred Public Services Delivery, Item 8 was High Quality of Service and
Item 9 was Friendliness and Attractiveness. The data for these items are presented in
Table 4.16 on page 97:
- 97
-
Tab
le 4
.16:
Com
pelli
ng R
easo
ns fo
r Pu
blic
Ser
vice
s to
Dev
elop
and
Impl
emen
t eG
over
nanc
e in
Fiji
– T
he R
espo
nden
ts’ P
ersp
ectiv
e
Freq
uenc
y on
Sca
le
Rea
sons
/Exp
ecta
tions
of
Res
pond
ents
Lo
w E
xpec
tatio
n M
ediu
m-L
ow
Expe
ctat
ion
Med
ium
Ex
pect
atio
n M
ediu
m-H
igh
Expe
ctat
ion
Hig
h Ex
pect
atio
n
Tran
spar
ency
and
A
ccou
ntab
ility
38
95
20
12
8
119
Incr
easi
ng
Opp
ortu
nitie
s for
Pa
rtici
patio
n 32
116
91
11
7 44
Vis
ible
Impa
ct o
f Fe
edba
ck
65
59
15
6 98
22
Acc
ess t
o In
form
atio
n 49
75
53
12
2 10
1
Acc
ess t
o Pu
blic
Se
rvic
es
30
11
8 33
12
3 96
Gov
ernm
ents
Eff
orts
to
Brid
ge th
e D
igita
l D
ivid
e 37
63
120
11
7 63
Citi
zen
Cen
tred
Publ
ic
Serv
ice
Del
iver
y 66
69
38
132
95
Hig
h Q
ualit
y Se
rvic
e 43
88
50
14
2 77
Frie
ndlin
ess a
nd
Attr
activ
enes
s 69
43
128
74
86
- 98 -
In identifying the main expectations of the public in dealing with government, 38
respondents rated Transparency and Accountability as ‘Low Expectation’, 95 rated it
as ‘Medium-Low Expectation’, 20 as ‘Medium Expectation’ and 128 of the 400
respondents rated transparency as ‘Medium-High Expectation’ and overall 119
respondents rated transparency as ‘High Expectation’. The main reason why
transparency and accountability is rated between ‘Medium’ to ‘High Expectation’ is
because citizens are facing increased chances of bribery and corruption in their
dealings with public agencies. This was evident from the survey data presented in
Tables 4.3 to 4.7.
For item 2, which is Increased Opportunity for Participation In Policy Making and
Implementation, 32 of the respondents rated it as ‘Low Expectation’, 116 had
‘Medium-Low Expectation’, 91 had ‘Medium Expectation’, 117 had ‘Medium-High
Expectation’ and 44 of the respondents had ‘High Expectation’. This is an important
expectation and was clearly evident from results presented by Rahman and Naz
(2005) in which it was highlighted that Fiji citizens are not given equal opportunities
for participation in policy making and implementation. It was revealed that Fiji
government is always taking a delivery-channel approach where policies are
designed on table and delivered to citizens, instead of taking a citizen-centric
approach and ensuring that citizens engage and participate. This can only come
about if the government takes down the tool of governance right down to the
community level, which can be enabled through eGovernance citizen-centric
initiatives.
As reflected in Item 3: Visible Impact of Feedback, 65 of the respondents had ‘Low
Expectation’, 59 had ‘Medium-Low Expectation’, 156 had ‘Medium Expectation’,
98 had ‘Medium-High Expectation’ and 22 had ‘High Expectation’. Visible impact
of feedback is also highly rated and seems to be an important expectation of
respondents in this study because the feedback process in service delivery in Fiji is
poor due to excessive centralization and bureaucratic procedures. This was reflected
in Tables 4.5, 4.6 and 4.7.
It is revealed from Item 4: Access to Information that 49 of the respondents in this
survey had ‘Low Expectation’ on Access to Information, 75 had ‘Medium-Low
Expectation’, 53 had ‘Medium Expectation’, 122 had ‘Medium-High Expectation’
- 99 -
and 101 of the respondents had ‘High Expectation’. The main reason why access to
information was also highlighted as an important expectation for utilizing
eGovernance is because of freedom of information data. The data for freedom of
information was presented in Table 4.15 and advantages are already discussed.
When there is freedom of information data, there is free access to information for the
public.
Looking at Item 5: Access to Public Services, 30 of the 400 respondents had ‘Low
Expectation’ of Access, 118 had ‘Medium-Low Expectation of access to services, 33
had ‘Medium Expectation’, 123 had ‘Medium-High Expectation’ and overall 96 had
‘High Expectation from public services. Access to public services was highlighted
as a problem in Fiji in the Rahman and Naz (2005) paper, Pacific Regional ICT
Consultation Report of ePacifika (2003) and UNESCO (2002) survey findings, thus
the main reason for the public to have greater expectations of gains from access to
services. The main expectation of value from eGovernance on Item 6: Government’s Efforts
to Bridge the Digital Divide pinpoint that 37 respondents have ‘Low Expectation’, 63
have ‘Medium-Low Expectation’, 120 have ‘Medium Expectation’, 117 have
‘Medium-High Expectation’ and finally 63 of the respondents have ‘High
Expectation’. This is a crucial expectation of respondents in this survey, due to a
huge gap in terms of digital divide within urban and rural areas in Fiji and between
educated and uneducated class (UNESCO, 2002) and also between state and citizens
at grassroots level (Rahman and Naz, 2005).
On Item 7: Citizen-centred services, it is reflected in Table 4.16 that 66 of the
respondents have ‘Low Expectation’, 69 have ‘Medium-Low Expectation’ and 38
have ‘Medium Expectation’. Majority of the respondents (132) have ‘Medium-High
Expectation’ and 95 have ‘High Expectation’. This is also evident through research
conducted by Rahman and Naz (2005). In analyzing the expectations of citizens on Item 8: High quality of service, 43 have
‘Low Expectation’, 88 have ‘Medium-Low Expectation’ and 50 have ‘Medium
Expectation’. Overall out of 219 respondents, 142 had ‘Medium-High Expectation’
and 77 had ‘High Expectation’. Quality of service is very much determined by time,
- 100 -
cost and procedures. In terms of the time factor in dealing with public service
delivery, it was seen that it is a cause of major bottleneck and dissatisfaction. In
looking at the cost factor it was also found to be a source of frustration as there is
excessive centralization, corruption and favouritism, and the same is true for
procedures that entail a long set of rules and tight bureaucratic control. This was
evident in data presented in this survey in Tables 4.5, 4.6 and 4.7. Thus, because
effectiveness and responsiveness of public officials in interacting with citizens is
poor and a cause of dissatisfaction, ‘quality of service’ is rated highly.
Finally in reflecting upon the last item, Friendliness and Attractiveness, it is seen that
69 have ‘Low Expectation’, 43 have ‘Medium-Low Expectation’, 128 have ‘Medium
Expectation’, 74 have ‘Medium-High Expectation’ and overall 86 have ‘High
Expectation’. 4.9 Priority Features In an eGovernance application, priority features are important. So in this study,
respondents were asked to identify the priority features that would make
eGovernance attractive in the local context. Six items were used and on a five point
scale ranging from 1 indicating ‘Low Priority’ to 5 indicating ‘High Priority’ and the
features tapped (Question 16). The assessment of Item 1, ‘Unique, custom fitted; targeted content’, shows that 252
respondents attempted this set of questions, while 148 did not fill in their responses.
Of this 252 respondents, 132 respondents have ‘Medium Priority’, 80 have ‘Medium-
High Priority’, and 40 have ‘High Priority’. Bhatnagar (2003, 2005) suggests that
unique custom fitted content is essential in achieving grass-root level participation.
Item 2 on ‘Interactivity’ shows that once again out of the 400 respondents, 252 filled
in their responses, while their were 148 missing responses. It reveals that 21 of the
respondents have ‘Medium Priority’ for Interactivity, 112 have ‘Medium-High
Priority’, and 119 have ‘High Priority’. Authors such as Colby (2001), Chaurasia
(2003) and Millard (2004) suggest that interactivity is one of the powerful aspects of
eGovernance that offers a gain over other conventional communication information
systems. The results are displayed in Table 4.17 on the next page.
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-
Tab
le 4
.17:
Pri
ority
Fea
ture
of a
n eG
over
nanc
e A
pplic
atio
n In
Fiji
– R
espo
nden
ts’ V
iew
Pr
iori
ty F
eatu
res
Low
Prio
rity*
* M
ediu
m-L
ow
Prio
rity
Med
ium
Prio
rity*
M
ediu
m-H
igh
Prio
rity
Hig
h Pr
iorit
y
Uni
que,
cus
tom
fitte
d co
nten
t -
- 40
25
2 14
8
Inte
ract
ivity
-
- 21
112
11
9 M
ulti-
chan
nel c
apac
ity
- -
57
12
3 72
Ease
of n
avig
atio
n -
- 44
139
69
Rel
iabi
lity
- -
100
10
8 44
Oth
er fe
atur
es
- Fas
t and
Con
veni
ent
- Acc
essi
ble
- Frie
ndly
and
Attr
activ
e - C
itize
n C
ente
red
Serv
ice
Del
iver
y - E
ase
of U
nder
stan
ding
-Any
one
Can
Use
- F
lexi
ble
and
Res
pons
ive
11
8
203
24
6
* N
ote:
Of t
he 4
00 re
spon
dent
s onl
y 25
2 re
spon
dent
s fill
ed in
Que
stio
n 16
per
tain
ing
to P
riorit
y fe
atur
es.
Non
e of
thes
e 25
2 re
spon
dent
s fill
ed in
opt
ion
for ‘
Low
Prio
rity’
, an
d ‘M
ediu
m-L
ow P
riorit
y’.
**
N
ote:
Onl
y fo
r Oth
er F
eatu
res,
Res
pond
ents
circ
led
optio
n fo
r ‘Lo
w P
riorit
y’ to
‘Hig
h Pr
iorit
y’.
- 102 -
Moving on, Item 3, ‘Multi channel capacity’, in Table 4.17 reflects 57 have ‘Medium
Priority’, 123 have ‘Medium-High Priority’, and 72 have ‘High Priority’. Here again
authors Colby (2001), Chaurasia (2003) and Millard (2004) pinpoint that multi-
channel capacity enhances the way public service delivery is conducted and the
relations between state and citizens. These critics mention that the power of
eGovernance as a vehicle of communication means that citizens can be more fully
involved in all aspects of government, including policy-making, thus reinforcing the
creation of a culture based on trust and mutual interest. Yisheng (2002) says that it is
this honesty and integrity that eGovernance provides.
On the other hand, Item 4, ‘Ease of Navigation’ shows that 44 of the 252 respondents
have ‘Medium Priority’, 139 have ‘Medium-High Priority’ and 69 have ‘High
Priority’. It is highlighted that ease of navigation allows citizens no matter from
what educational background they are to browse and directly find information they
require (Colby, 2001; Chaurasia, 2003; Millard, 2004).
Further on, Item 5, ‘Reliability’ of the 252 responses, 100 have ‘Medium Priority’,
108 have ‘Medium-High Priority’ and 44 have ‘High Priority’. Bhatnagar (2003,
2005), Colby (2001), Chaurasia (2003), and Millard (2004) mention that reliability of
an eGovernance system is critical for navigation, accessibility, interactivity and
feedback purposes. The authors further assert that if eGovernance is reliable, then it
ensures security and easy data management and sharing across intranets as well as
extranets, and takes care of privacy issues.
Lastly on Item 6, which was stated as ‘Others (Please Specify)’ option, 11
respondents have ‘Low Priority’, 8 have ‘Medium-Low Priority’ and 203 have
‘Medium Priority’. 24 have ‘Medium-High Priority’ and 6 have ‘High Priority’. The
options for this included the following: Fast, Convenient, Accessible, Friendly and
Attractive, Citizen Centred Service Delivery, Ease of Understanding-Anyone Can
Use and Flexible and Responsive. Chaurasia (2003), Colby (2001), Bhatnagar (2003,
2005), Ahmed (2004), Millard (2004), Prahalad (2005) and Yisheng (2002) have
suggested that for eGovernance to be attractive in the local context, all individuals
irrespective of their needs and literacy levels must be able to utilize eGovernance,
which means it must be accessible to all citizens, everyone should be able to use it, it
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must respond to different user needs and most important of all has to be citizen-
centric. By analyzing the 6 items on priority features that would make eGovernance
attractive in local context (Fiji), it is vital to point out that the majority of the
respondents have rated the items between ‘Medium Priority’ to ‘High Priority’.
These features have been numerously highlighted to be of critical importance in
designing eGovernance applications in research done by Bhatnagar (2003, 2005),
Bowankar (2004), Bassanini (2003), Cho and Choi (2004), and Ahmed (2004).
4.10 Issues in eGovernance 4.10.1 Requirements for Successfully Using eGovernance In Reducing
Corruption There are important requirements for successfully using ICTs/eGovernance as a tool
to fight public sector corruption. This section presents the issues in line with survey
findings.57 Respondents were given 13 issues and asked to state their options in
terms of ‘Yes and No’ (Question 18).
Table 4.18: Requirements/Drivers of Success for Using eGovernance in Fiji – Respondents’ View Drivers of success Yes No
External Pressure 94 158
Internal Will 241 11
Overall Strategy 244 8
Project Management 180 72
Effective Change Management 166 86
Requisite Competencies 241 11
Effective Design 197 55
Adequate Technological Infrastructure 241 11
Adequate Data Infrastructure 204 48
Adequate Legal Infrastructure 222 30
Sufficient Time and Money 240 12
Proper Timing 192 60
Communication Environment 103 149
*Multiple Responses are possible. Of the 400 respondents’, only 252 respondents had answered Question 18. 57 The questionnaire survey asked the respondents questions pertaining to issues, barriers/challenges and ways of overcoming barriers on eGovernance in Fiji. These survey findings are succinctly summarized and analysed.
- 104 -
External Pressure for this study was defined as ‘drivers for reform from outside
government, for example: from donors, voters, taxpayers or other clients’ (Heeks,
2004). 94 of the 252 respondents think that ‘Yes’, ‘External Pressure’ is an
important requirement, while the majority 158 view otherwise. On the other hand,
241 respondents think that ‘Yes’, ‘Internal Will’ is a successful requirement, while
11 have said ‘No’. Internal will is defined as ‘drive from key government officials
acting as channels for external pressure and/or with internal agendas of their own’
(Heeks, 2004).
In assessing Issue 3, ‘Overall Strategy’, it is reflected in Table 4.18 that 244 of 252
respondents have said ‘Yes’ and 8 have said ‘No’. Overall strategy is defined as a
‘plan for public sector transparency and accountability; seeing ICTs as the means not
the end, and integrating ICTs with broader reform objectives’ (with institutional
strengthening possibly preceding ICTs) (Heeks, 2004).
Issue 4 on ‘Project Management’ in Table 4.18 indicates that 180 have said ‘Yes’
while 72 have said ’No’. Project management implies that a ‘transparent approach is
needed to build an e-transparency system with clear responsibilities, good planning
and consideration or risk, and good organization of resources; building knowledge
from past and current projects; balancing use of in-house and external staff; with
well-managed partnerships between public agencies, and public-private
organizations’ (Heeks, 2004).
The data presented shows that for Issue 5, ‘Effective Change Management’ as a
successful requirement, 166 have said ‘Yes’ while 86 have said ‘No’. Effective
change management is defined as including leadership with a project champion, use
of incentives/disincentives to create commitment to and ownership of e-transparency
project, and stakeholder involvement to build support and minimize resistance
(Heeks, 2004). Looking at Issue 6, ‘Requisite Competencies’ , in Table 4.18 given
above it is seen that 241 respondents have said ‘Yes’ so they consider the
requirement as important, while 11 consider otherwise. Requisite competencies for
this survey is defined as ‘presence of the necessary skills and knowledge, especially
within government itself; need both subject-area and IT skills/knowledge, which may
be combined within individual 'hybrids'’ (Heeks, 2004).
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Issue 7, ‘Effective Design’ shows that 197 respondents said ‘Yes’ indicating that
Effective design is a crucial requirement while 55 have said ‘No’. Effective design is
defined as an ‘incremental/piloting approach following ‘keep it small and simple’
principles; participatory involvement of all stakeholders, leading to designs that meet
real user needs and match real user contexts’ (Heeks, 2004).
Issue 8 on ‘Adequate Technological Infrastructure’ shows that 241 of the 252
respondents consider this as a prerequisite for successfully employing eGovernance
while, 11 have said ‘No’, so they do not consider it important. Adequate
technological infrastructure can be seen as comprising of a sound foundation of
electricity, computers and networks and/or use of more pervasive and accessible
ICTs such as cell phones or interactive TV for fighting corruption in public service
(Heeks, 2004). Analyzing Table 4.18 it can be seen that on Issue 9 ‘Adequate Data
Infrastructure’, 204 of the 252 respondents have said ‘Yes’ indicating this issue as an
important requirement, while 48 have stated ‘No’. Adequate data infrastructure for
this study is defined as ‘good quality of underlying digitized data, supported by clear
controls and incentives/disincentives’ (Heeks, 2004).
On the other hand, Issue 10 ‘Adequate Legal Infrastructure’ reveals that 222 of 252
respondents have said ‘Yes’ and 30 have said ‘No’. Adequate legal infrastructure is
termed as having a broader legal framework that provides guidance on transparency
procedures and sanctions for transgression; may include freedom of information and
e-transactions legislation (Heeks, 2004). Reflecting upon Issue 11, ‘Sufficient time
and Money’, 240 of the 252 respondents have said ‘Yes’ indicating that sufficient
time and money is a crucial requirement for employing eGovernance in fighting
corruption in Fiji, while 12 have said ‘No’. Sufficient time and money would mean
having capacity for both implementation and ongoing operation of the e-transparency
system in Fiji’s public sector (Heeks, 2004).
The data for Issue 12, ‘Proper Timing’ reflects that 192 of the 252 respondents have
said ‘Yes’, which implies that this is an important issue in terms of successful
requirements, while 60 have said ‘No’. The last issue on ‘Communication
Environment’ in Table 4.18 shows that 103 of the 252 respondents have said ‘Yes’
and the other 149 have said ‘No’.
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The majority of the survey respondents have circled ‘Yes’ option for internal will,
overall strategy, effective project management, effective change management,
requisite competencies, effective design, adequate technological infrastructure,
adequate data infrastructure, adequate legal infrastructure, sufficient time and money
and proper timing. These requirements have been numerously highlighted in studies
by Bhatnagar (2003, 2005), Heeks (1999a, 1999b 2000a, 2000b, and 2004), Fiji
Country Report (2005), Economic And Social Commission For Asia And The
Pacific (2004), United Nations Development Program (2004), Maenpaa (2004),
Rahman and Naz (2005), Pacific Island Forum Secretariat (2004), UNESCO (2002),
Wescott (2003), and Toland and Purcell (2002). On the contrary, many have said
‘No’ to external pressure and communication environment, which has been
highlighted in surveys by Heeks (2001a, 2001b, 2004) and Bhatnagar (2003, 2005)
as not critical factors.
4.11 Requirements for Successful Implementation of ICTs/eGovernance for Fighting Public Sector Corruption
From Section 4.11 to Section 4.14 the responses provided by the respondents have
been interpreted without presenting any tables since Questions 19, 20, 21, 22 and 23
are of an open ended nature.
In the previous section successful requirements were highlighted. But, in this section
the survey respondents 58 were asked, what the requirements are for successful
implementation so that ICTs can be deployed as a tool for public sector corruption in
Fiji (Question 19). The summary of findings are presented below:
Firstly, it is important to note that eGovernance can only be successfully
implemented if there is strong political will and leadership, institutional capacity and
stakeholder commitment. It was also evident from the documented cases in Chapter
2 that political will and leadership drive the change towards eGovernance and also
mobilize support from stakeholders. If the support for eGovernance remains narrow
and stakeholders perceive threat and therefore resist change, then implementation
will be fraught with difficulties.
58 Survey respondents responses are summarised and findings are presented.
- 107 -
Secondly, implementing eGovernance will put extensive pressure on the human
resource needs. There will be an urgent need for qualified people with necessary IT
and management skills who can assist in designing and implementing eGovernance
projects. However, as many people are migrating, strategies will need to focus on
developing the human resource capacity.
Three, policy issues such as the legal aspect of communicating online will pose a
great challenge. In addition, privacy protection and data security of electronic
transactions will be questions that the new legislation for online service delivery will
need to deal with.
Four, the respondents’ view is clear that eGovernance implementation for improving
service delivery must follow demand for such solutions. If there is little or no
demand, then people must first be educated about the benefits and opportunities,
before implementing such initiatives on a grand scale. At the same time, if there is a
huge demand for eGovernance, then based on the needs of the people, eGovernance
should be implemented. In particular it is highlighted by the respondents that
addressing a potential challenge for eGovernance implementation is the issue of
digital divide and social exclusion.
Other factor issues, related to the overall socio-economic situation in the country,
namely purchasing power, technological infrastructure, strategies of ICT companies,
property rights protection, level of trust in business, quality of education and level of
public-private partnerships.
In addition, to implement eGovernance, huge financial resources will be needed. In
this case donor assistance may be needed. The respondents highlighted that the ICT
professionals and public sector officials will need to work together in implementing
eGovernance systems for combating corruption. The premise behind doing so is to
overcome cultural resistance and enhance teamwork and successfully coordinate
eGovernance projects.
Finally, it has been suggested by the respondents that a small developing nation like
Fiji should not start with large scale projects. It should begin with pilot projects and
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identify projects that have been successful in other developing countries. The most
important issue highlighted here is that this will require a proper study to be carried
out by an independent agency (either Fiji Governments ITC Department or overseas
experts). The respondents have also argued that all the priority features
aforementioned in Section 4.9, should be included in implementation. They have
further stated that motivating factors in developing and implementing eGovernance
(Mentioned in Section 4.7) and expectations of gains and perceptions of real value
from eGovernance initiatives (Mentioned in Section 4.8) also have to be considered.
4.12 Barriers of Using ICTs/eGovernance in Fiji for Fighting Public Sector Corruption
In Question 20, respondents were asked to identify the barriers. These barriers are
summarized and discussed below:
Firstly, lack of political will, institutional support and leadership was identified as a
barrier in the country. Two, limited infrastructure (specifically in rural areas), long-
term telecommunication monopoly, slow connectivity, high cost of internet
connections, problems in power supply and lack of digitized information on public
agencies were also identified.
Thirdly, shortage of skilled ICT workforce and computer literate population is a
major barrier. Also there is lack of awareness about the benefits of ICT (at
grassroots level; especially poor/illiterate rural population) to meet development
needs especially in curbing corruption (this is also highlighted in this survey; those
who are aware of eGovernance are mostly educated group).
Fourthly, Fiji is quite behind in introducing the latest technology, due to the high cost
of computers and other ICT equipment. There is also lack of education and training
of public officials and citizens on eGovernance issues and staff knowledge among
public service officials of equipment is lacking.
Fifthly, there exists an uncertain political environment and financial and timing
problems. In addition, cultural resistance/negative stigma and fear of public officials
is a major obstacle.
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Further on, all populations do not have access and diffusion is a problem. Problems
of an escalating digital divide—not only within educated versus uneducated, but also
between rural versus urban plus citizen vis-a-vis state represent a major challenge.
Adding on, respondents feel that the government of the day is unable to foresee
financial/investment modes for building eGovernance initiatives and lack of
cooperation from all stakeholders (private sector, public sector, civil society, etc.)
can pose problems.
Moreover, old legal rules and policies may hinder eGovernance progress. Finally,
there seems to be no policy agenda of eGovernance on ‘Reducing Corruption in
Public Service Delivery’. It is highlighted that internal will is needed.
4.13 Overcoming Barriers
In this section, respondents were asked to state how the barriers can be overcome and
from their perspective, list the policy recommendations (Question 21). The findings
are given below:
Firstly, there is a need for strong political will, leadership, institutional support and
involvement of all stakeholders. Leadership is the most important prerequisite for
bringing eGovernance and corruption reduction issues to the political agenda and
developing an overall strategic plan. It was highlighted in this survey that little can
be achieved if the government does not facilitate a conducive policy environment.
Leadership is also important to raise awareness about the objectives and benefits of
eGovernance to reduce corruption, and in consulting widely with stakeholders to
reduce resistance.
Secondly, appropriate infrastructure needs to be put in place and competition needs
to be introduced in the country to overcome the telecommunications monopoly,
which is leading to internet problems and connectivity issues. Also, public–private
partnership should be encouraged. Public–private partnership can help in leveraging
the financial, managerial and technological strengths of the private sector. This is a
very important suggestion made by the respondents, which is similar to Kalia’s
(2005) findings. The author argues that experience around the globe shows that the
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public–private partnership model can be employed successfully. This model has also
been much talked about by one of the top ten management thinkers in the world,
Prahalad (2005), in his book Fortune At The Bottom of the Pyramid.
Thirdly, human resource capacity should be developed to retain ICT skilled
workforce in the country. Campaigns to raise awareness will be vital and public
service officials should be involved as they are the ones to be affected by the
eGovernance policy. This way they can become better informed and resistance can
be reduced. Public service officials may also need to be trained as many lack skills
and knowledge of ICT. Also, the people at large must be made aware about the
benefits and objectives so that they can assess for themselves the benefits to their
livelihoods.
Fourthly, access to rural and inhabited areas needs to be increased by putting in place
proper infrastructure, to address the issue of digital divide and social exclusion.
In addition, old legal rules may need to be updated and new rules sorted out,
especially regarding privacy, data protection and freedom of information. Also,
policies may need to be reviewed and assessed to ensure that they do not impede the
desired results of eGovernance.
A large number of respondents have stated that the priority features aforementioned
in Section 4.9, should be included in implementation. They have further stated that
motivating factors in developing and implementing eGovernance (mentioned in
Section 4.7) and expectations of gains and perceptions of real value from
eGovernance initiatives (mentioned in Section 4.8) also have to be considered.
4.14 Any Other Suggestions That Will Assist Fiji’s Public Service Delivery Organizations.
The survey respondents were asked by the researcher to give their suggestions which
would assist in successfully employing eGovernance for reducing corruption in
service delivery (Question 22). The suggestions are summarized below:
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Firstly, to employ eGovernance in the fight against corruption, the respondents
highlighted that the public service officials should work together with the ICT
professionals to ensure that eGovernance is properly coordinated and monitored.
Two, since eGovernance is a new policy and it will affect the public service in terms
of its internal functioning as well as its relations with customers, organizational
design and modification may be needed.
And finally, the most substantial issue suggested by the respondents was that if
communities (who are to be affected by the eGovernance policy) are not involved in
eGovernance initiatives, then eGovernance is not going to reduce corruption and it
would be a waste to link eGovernance to corruption reduction efforts. Many
respondents have commented that decentralized governance and community
empowerment would be a possible solution.
4.15 eGovernance Integration: In What Ways Can This Be
Accomplished? The survey respondents were asked by the researcher to give their suggestions for
incorporating eGovernance into long-term development policies and reform
programs (Question 23). The suggestions are summarized below:
First of all, integration is possible only if there is an overall strategy. The strategic
plan was highlighted by the respondents as a document that can set forth the
objective of using eGovernance as a tool for reducing corruption.
Secondly, to integrate eGovernance, there needs to be strong political will and a
stable political system.
Thirdly, eGovernance integration has to follow a participatory (bottom-up) approach.
This suggestion is very important in this study. As was mentioned in sub-section
4.14 above, decentralized governance can facilitate community involvement and
participation at the grassroots level.
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4.16 Conclusion This study has explored the role of eGovernance in reducing principal–agent
problems, which in turn impact on corruption reduction. All the four hypotheses in
this study have been supported and the results indicate that ‘eGovernance is
positively related to principal–agent and corruption reduction’ and that ‘principal–
agent is positively related to corruption reduction’. It has also been proved through
the findings that corruption reduction is dependent on principal–agent and that the
independent variable (eGovernance) significantly explains the variance in corruption
reduction. The priority features, motivating factors, expectations of value from
eGovernance initiatives were all highlighted. It is confirmed through the findings in
this research that the expectations of citizens from public agencies are high on
transparent and responsive citizen-centred services. It is realized that ICT
contributes to good governance by (1) increasing transparency, information, and
accountability, (2) facilitating accurate decision-making and public participation, and
(3) enhancing efficient delivery of government services. Currently, the Fiji
Government has a strategic plan in place (mentioned in Chapter 2), but the focus is
on implementing eGovernance for service delivery; it has not yet realized the
potential benefits for using eGovernance as a tool for curbing corruption in service
delivery. However, with this research it has been proved that the majority of the
educated population are aware of eGovernance and hold the view that
ICT/eGovernance can reduce corruption. The ability of a developing country like
Fiji to reap the full benefits of eGovernance is limited and is largely hampered by the
existence of many political, social and economic hindrances. But, despite the
barriers and impediments that Fiji is experiencing, it can still take advantage of the
ICT revolution. The analyses has revealed some important tips to consider for a
successful design and implementation of eGovernance initiatives. It can be envisaged
that implementing eGovernance is complex and requires not only a vision and a plan
but also strong political leadership at the highest level. Leadership also means that a
permanent team has to be put in place within government that has the political clout
and the funding to force government managers to rethink current working practices
and impose technology standards. The next chapter presents the results and analysis
from the case study.
- 113 -
Chapter 5
Case Presentation and Analysis
5.1 Introduction This chapter will present the case study on the Ministry of Agriculture in Fiji in
which the interaction between farmers, middlemen (extension officers) and higher-
level officials (decision making authorities) is illustrated. It seeks to show the
escalating principal–agency problems that the farmers face and highlight problems of
harassment and delays and how lots of issues of corruption are cropped out.
Therefore, the aim is to show with the use of eGovernance, how the public service
delivery process can be made faster so that the farmers will not face escalating
agency problems.
5.2 Overview of the Case The purpose of this section of the case is to study the processes and mechanisms in
which the field officials (deputed from the Public Service Commission) are involved
in parenting and harbouring corruption in Fiji. The case of petty corruption is
presented here to show how the State’s resources are misappropriated by
bureaucratic means in which both public officials and local elites play their part in
order to secure their share of the available cake. The empirical evidence given in this
section is primarily based on the data and information recently collected in a survey
conducted in Eastern, Western and Northern divisions in Fiji.59
From the opinion survey, the researcher gathered some ideas on how, when and at
what places a corrupt practice such as bribery, takes place. From the following
discussion, it will be revealed that within the Ministry of Agriculture, service
delivery is affected not only by direct intermediaries such as extension officers but
also by personnel at higher levels who go to great lengths in manipulating processes.
59 In addition to formal methods of research, such as questionnaire survey, interview and case study, other tools of research such as informal interviews, chatting and gossiping with local farmers and extension officials also substantially helped to obtain interesting information on corruption and bribery and lack of transparency and mismanagement. A pseudonym has been used to protect the identity of the studied Ministry and the officials and farmers interviewed. This list and interview questions is given in Appendix 3.3, 3.4, 3.5 and 3.6.
- 114 -
5.3 Corruption In The Field of Bureaucracy in Fiji: The Case of
Ministry of Agriculture Rural Extension Service Delivery The Rural assistance scheme began in 2000 and targets agricultural farmers Fiji
wide.60 This account is drawn from discussions with several extension officials61
who explained the application process that farmers need to follow. Farmers who
want to apply for assistance have to get forms62 from the rural farming assistance
unit at the Agricultural Land and Tenant Act Office (ALTA) in Nabua in Eastern
division or, for farmers in the Western and Northern divisions, from their district
extension offices. Farmers who know how to fill in the forms take the forms to their
respective extension offices. Extension officials assist those who do not know how
to fill in the forms. The guideline on funding assistance for farmers is given in
Appendix 5.1.
When the forms are filled in they have to be endorsed. For indigenous Fijians, the
turaga–ni–koro, mata or roko63 has to endorse64 the application. Their endorsement
is a proof that the farmer is from their area/village/island and province. For Indo–
Fijians the advisory councillor has to endorse. The applicants (farmers) and the
locality extension officials fill in Part B of the RF1 forms in which Indo–Fijians are
required to attach details of their land tenure: native/freehold or crown, so land titles
need to be attached. For indigenous Fijians, they come under vakavanua.65
60 Rural Farming Assistance is a public service delivered to the rural farmers through extension officials. These farmers who do not have reach and access to main centres apply through Extension Offices and also take forms directly to the Processing Centre (known as the rural farming assistance scheme, located in a section in ALTA [Agricultural land and Tenant Act] Office in Nabua). This scheme was particularly chosen because it is one of the most important service provided to poor farmers. 61 The extension officials have been very helpful in giving information on the agency problems they have witnessed and explained the process that rural farmers follow to get a service rendered. A pseudonym has been used to protect the identity of the extension officials of Ministry of Agriculture. Refer to Appendix 3.3 and 3.4 for a list of pseudonyms. 62 These forms that are filled by farmers are known as RF1 forms. See Appendix 5.1. 63 Turaga–ni–koro is the spokesperson and village head. Mata in the absence of Turaga–ni–koro leads. Mata is the island representative. And Roko is the provincial head in the Indigenous Fijian culture. Their endorsement is a proof that the farmer is from their area/village/ island and province. 64 Appendix 5.1, the RF1 form in Part A, Question 11 outlines the endorsement details. 65 Vakavanua in Indigenous Fijian culture refers to the land owned by the Mataqali who have given the piece of land to the farmers in their village. Mataqali is like a clan in a village.
- 115 -
Locality field officers provide details of the constraints faced by the farmers and the
farming programme66 that the applicants intend to follow. Income details are also
provided. The locality extension officer and senior extension officer then sign the
application, after which the form goes to the rural farming assistance unit in ALTA.
In this unit, the forms go first to clerks who sort the forms, then to a screening
committee, which makes recommendations, and then for signing off by the chairman
and secretary of the rural farming unit. After passing through these stages successful
applications are approved by the agricultural officers (screening committee) at the
rural farming unit. Following approval, a notice (RF1A. See Appendix 5.2) is sent
with a list of successful applicants and details of items approved for each applicant to
the relevant district extension offices.
The survey for the case study was conducted among people who visited extension
officials in the Ministry of Agriculture for services between 2000 and mid-2005.
Table 5.1 sets out the profile of the sixty farmers who participated in the survey for
the case study.
Table 5.1: Farmer Profile Divisions Number of Farmers
(Sample Selection)
Age of
Respondents’
Ethnicity Category of
Respondents
(Rich, Middle or
Poor Level)
Western 36 Under 25 (4)
26–39 (27)
Over 40 (5)
Indo-Fijians (18)
Indigenous Fijians (18)
Middle-level (8)
Poor-level (28)
Northern 6 Under 25 (1)
26–39 (2)
Over 40 (1)
Indo-Fijians (3)
Indigenous Fijians (3)
Poor-level (6)
Eastern 18 Under 25 (4)
26–39 (12)
Over 40 (2)
Indo-Fijians (9)
Indigenous Fijians (9)
Rich-level (3)
Middle-level (8)
Poor-level (7)
All respondents in the survey said that they were aware of bribery in service delivery
both with extension officials and higher-level officials at processing centres for
claims for assistance. When asked ‘to what extent does bribery exist’. It was
66 Farming programme is filled in Part C of RF1 form. See Appendix 5.1.
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surprising to note that all the 60 interviewed farmers felt that bribery existed to a
great extent in service delivery. Auditor General’s Reports (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002)
corroborate such perceptions.
The farmers were asked to say whether they themselves had ever given a bribe to (i)
get a service rendered, (ii) manipulate procedures and (iii) get an award of financial
assistance from the rural farming assistance scheme. The reasons for bribery which
drive the farmers to make corrupt payments, i.e., indulge in bribery, were mostly due
to the farmers motivation to bribe extension officials either to by-pass certain access
encounters or to speed up the process of service delivery. In this practice the
intermediary (extension officials) plays a very crucial role. The responses show that
35 claimed to have contacted the extension officials to bribe the higher-level decision
making authorities. Eleven farmers said they had paid bribes directly to extension
officials, another 5 farmers said that they had bribed the higher-level officials at the
processing centre, to overcome access encounters, manipulate queues and to get
awards. These farmers commented on the ‘different forms of bribery’ apart from
cash. Their comments suggested that the ‘exchange of gifts’ and ‘sharing of award
supplies’ was rife. Some of these farmers also commented that they were reluctant to
pay bribes, but because those who they thought did not deserve assistance had paid
bribes and benefited, they resorted to similar practices. In their view bribery to
secure services had become a ‘norm’.
The remaining 9 farmers stated that they had never been involved in any kind of
‘bribery’, but knew of farmers who had given bribes and received services. These
farmers reflected that although they did not want to involve themselves in any form
of bribery and malpractice, securing service delivery had become a ‘pain’. Getting
access to services needed many visits. Costs of traveling to a central location were
high. They also commented on the large number of process steps and points of
contact. Further on, the farmers were asked apart from extension officials, whether
they had gone through the Rural farming assistance unit at ALTA. They mentioned
that in previous years, when forms were misplaced, they had to go directly to the
ALTA unit. These farmers state that the central processing unit is no exception. If
one goes to the unit directly, the queues are long and procedures take time. In their
experiences, feedback from the unit can take from 3 months to 3 years. The list of
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problems mentioned included delays, harassment and abuse, financial loss,
frustration and anger, helplessness and lack of access. These farmers stated that their
productivity had suffered and their poverty deepened. Such poverty referred not only
to income levels, but also to powerlessness, voicelessness, vulnerability and fear.
Informal discussions with extension officials supported claims that some farmers
received assistance improperly. They said that in some cases farmers received
assistance when their RF1 forms were not even screened and approved by the
processing committee. They showed the field researcher forms of two farmers who
had received assistance where the part of the RF1 form for official use was not
completed. They also gave the field researcher evidence that these farmers had
nevertheless received assistance. Further, these officials suggested also that people
who did not live where they said they did could obtain assistance. This happened
when the Roko-Tui or Turaga-Ni-Koro recommended farmers who neither owned
land in nor belonged to their province. In such instances, failure by officials to check
the judgments of community leaders led to inappropriate grants of assistance.
The following detailed cases of the two farmers illustrate the interaction between the
actors and the extent of administrative corruption.
Case Study 1: Farmer Chandar Ram67
Chandar Ram is a farmer in Eastern division of Viti Levu, Fiji. He was interviewed
on the Rural Farming Assistance Scheme and asked to give a detailed account of his
experiences. He outlined the escalating agency problems, issues of corruption and
the problems he faced.
Chandar Ram is a poor bracket farmer who earns $1000–$2500 from his agricultural
farm. Chandar Ram says that he applied for the Rural Farming Assistance Scheme in
2000 when it started. He got the form from the rural farming assistance unit at
ALTA by going to their office for a week because of queues. He took assistance
from the locality field officer, as he was not aware of what was required and how to
fill in the forms. He says that the officer filled in the forms and assured him that he
67 A pseudonym has been used to protect the identity of the farmer. Appendix 3.5 gives the interview list and Appendix 3.6 gives the interview questions.
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was being recommended. Farmer Chandar Ram says he was grateful to the locality
officer and awaited a response. After three months he went to the field officer
concerned and asked if there was a problem. He was told that the unit was still
processing applications. He then waited for another two months. Attempts to enquire
about progress failed because there was no system to trace specific applications.
Finally, after another two months he heard that some farmers, who were in the rich
and middle brackets, had received assistance while he was still waiting. He went to
the locality field officer, who told him that his application was not successful.
Chandar Ram says that he told the officer that those who were well off from his area
had received assistance and asked why, as a poor farmer, he had not received
anything. At this point he was told to go and ask the rural farming assistance unit.
At the unit, he was told that there was no record of his application being sent over by
the locality officer. He asked for another form to fill in, and was told there was no
form available and to come back three weeks later. In frustration, and because the
year was about to end, he did not go back for the forms.
In the second year, 2001, he again applied. By this time the field officer had changed.
On this occasion he states the field officer told him to pay him something so that his
forms could be filled in. As he could not afford to pay the officer he took the
assistance of a middle farmer who had already received assistance. He went himself
to submit the form at the rural farming unit. Here he was again taken aback.
Although there was a big queue, he states that he witnessed that if somebody gave
something at the counter, straight away the work would be done. However, he
waited and within two days was able to submit his application. He asked the
officials how long the process would take and was told three to six months. He states
that higher-level officials in the unit told him that if he wanted his application to be
processed within a week then he would have to help them and then they would
definitely help him.
Chandar Ram says he told the officials it was their duty to help poor farmers and as a
result he was abused and harassed and told to leave. The poor, illiterate farmer
explained how he was exploited due to lack of knowledge and provision of
information. After waiting for six months he again heard no result. During this
process he lost time and money and faced a lot of harassment and difficulty. Neither
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the rural farming assistance unit nor the local field officials gave him any response
on his application. After two applications in two years this farmer was never told
why his applications were rejected. The farmer realizes that in a society where the
basic values of trust, honesty, integrity and ethics in public life is degrading, he can
never receive assistance. Living on the margins of poverty and struggling to meet
the daily requirements and manage his farm, the poor farmer has faced great
consequences of corruption which has more so escalated due to principal–agent
relationship, where the extension officials want their share of the cake.
Case Study 2: Farmer Shankar Suruj68
Shankar Suruj is also a farmer from the Eastern division in Viti Levu, Fiji. He is a
middle level farmer. He states that previously he was a man of ‘principles’ and
valued integrity. However, because of lack of knowledge and access to services he
faced numerous problems. He states that he finds intermediaries such as extension
and higher-level officials to have a monopoly of power; they very easily ‘lock’ the
farmers and try to extract bribes. He states that today he is not ashamed to say that
he has bribed officials in the process of having a service rendered, because this is the
‘norm’. He states that everyone does this and gets financial assistance. He sees that
officials need the support of elite rural farmers to carry out their activities and the
farmers need the bureaucrats to obtain benefits from the government. He describes
an intimate and mutually beneficial relationship in which principles of good
governance are thrown out the window, private gains are maximized and the public
interest and professional ethics are sacrificed.
Farmer Shankar Suruj narrates that previously he was loyal, honest and followed the
normal application processes for rural farming assistance. But, he never received
any assistance. He came to the understanding that other farmers who were in the
same class as he was were able to receive benefits through manipulation. So he
decided to do the same. In 2004, he went to the Lakena extension office and got the
RF1 forms. He filled in the section he was required to complete and waited for the
official to do his work. The official mentioned how Shankar Suruj had received no
assistance from previous applications despite being a deserving applicant. He
68 A pseudonym has been used to protect the identity of the farmer. See Appendix 3.5 and 3.6.
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recalled that the official said that if only he had listened to them in the first instance,
he would have benefited long ago. He enquired from the locality field officer what it
would take for him to get assistance. The officer bargained for a cash incentive and
the farmer gave the official $2 in cash. The farmer narrates how the officer instantly
added more items of assistance to the list, made a very good recommendation and
endorsed the form. The official then gave the form to the supervisor, invoking
kerekere, the fijian exchange of favours and benefits. The supervisor demanded $5
and the farmer gave it. The form was endorsed and ready for processing.
Shankar Suruj says he was stunned. He could not believe that it was so easy. He
took the form to the Rural Farming Assistance Unit. When he arrived at the unit
there was as usual a queue. He went directly to the counter and asked for the higher-
level official to whom the officers at the extension centre had referred him. He met
the official and gave him the form. The farmer explains how the official raised his
eyebrows to enquire whether the farmer had anything in return for him. The farmer
had left a $10 note in the form and tapped twice. The official understood, nodded
and said that in two days time the application would be processed and the list of
successful applicants would be sent to the extension office. This helped the farmer
not only to get the official at higher level to manipulate queues but also get service
rendered. It is no surprise that the locality field officer approached the farmer four
days later. Shankar Suruj received assistance worth $200 in cash (which was sent to
his bank) and some equipment, which was delivered to his house.
Shankar Suruj states that previously all his attempts to gain assistance had failed.
Either his application never reached the Rural Farming Assistance Unit or the
officials demanded bribes. Bureaucratic delays and procedures caused a lot of
frustration. During the process he was harassed and abused. In previous attempts he
waited unsuccessfully for six months to two years, but by giving officials a share of
the cake, manipulating queues and bypassing procedures he secured the help of
officials and received assistance from the scheme.
5.3.1 Implications
The cases of the two farmers highlight how corruption can become embedded in
administrative culture. Both officials (at extension centres and the farming
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assistance unit) and farmers accepted it as a norm. Farmers accepted the stark reality
that nothing moved without adequately satisfying the relevant officials. Farmers face
demands for bribes at different stages, from filling in forms to final processing.
Farmers do not get what is due to them unless ‘dash’ or ‘speed money’ is paid. In
the case of farmer Chandar Ram, who lacked ‘organizational connections’, trying to
get service was like ‘plucking the moon from the sky’ (Schaffer, 1986: 366 in Khan
et al., 1995: 597). Such experiences accord with Griesinger’s (1990) observation that
dishonest behaviour occurs as a result of the agent exploiting an information
imbalance for his or her own gain.
The centralization of the approval processes imposed constraints on applicants. Both
farmers experienced costs because of time spent in travelling to find forms, getting
the forms filled in, submitting them in person, and then trying to check on progress.
Such difficulties are compounded because there is no mechanism to trace
applications. When forms are misplaced farmers have no way of checking where
their forms went. Because of distance in terms of education and social status, poor
farmers find it difficult to make useful enquiries. There is no transparency in the
decision making process. Because of the lack of accountability by officials, farmers
are unable to get information they need to know and therefore cannot ask informed
questions. Farmers are subject to a closed system of service delivery. Asymmetries
of information present farmers as principals with insuperable challenges (Rose–
Ackerman, 1978; Laffont, 1997). Boundaries of responsibility and action are not
rendered visible. The officials involved in responding to service delivery needs of
farmers are not put under scrutiny. Their responses are slow and the quality of
service is not monitored. Both cases illustrate this.
The amount of money a farmer is willing to offer seems to be an important criterion
of success. Making pay-offs to relevant officials accelerates the movement of files
and facilitates quick decision-making. The cases illustrate how, in exchange for
bribes, bureaucrats use their monopoly rights to process documents, grant assistance
or to keep incriminating information secret (Bowles, 1999). The different stages in
processing applications provide multiple opportunities for corruption. Rules and
regulations can be used to harass and extract bribes from farmers. The cases support
arguments that the greater the amount of discretion given to an agent, the more
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opportunities there will be for agents to give ‘favourable’ interpretations of
government rules and regulations to businesses in exchange for illegal payments
(Goudie and Stasavage, 1997).
These two cases illustrate how officials in field level government ministries can
interact badly with users of government services. However, the future of public
service delivery is not one of doom and gloom. Though many farmers in this study
stated that they had lost trust in public services, others still have hope. They believe
that through strong will and support from the government of the day the welfare
orientation of public service and its role in service delivery can and will improve.
5.3.2 Potential Role Of eGovernance In Improving Service Delivery and
Reducing Corruption
Following from this analysis it is proposed that increased use of ICT in service
delivery has significant potential to realize hopes for improvements for services users.
ICT can strengthen transparency and cut corruption. In particular it can reduce the
principal–agency problems that facilitate corruption. An ICT based rural farming
assistance registration system could remove delays and increase transparency and
accountability. The ‘OPEN’ (Online Procedures Enhancement) system in Seoul,
Korea provides a much-publicized example. Studies by Kang (2001), Bhatnagar
(2003, 2005) and Cho and Choi (2004) provide much attention to this system.69 A
virtue of such schemes is that they enable users to see behind official screens. As
Shleifer and Vishny (1993) observe, opening ‘multiple windows’ enables citizens to
contact someone else if a particular official tries to elicit a bribe. By opening up
alternatives, ICT based processes cut the capacity of bureaucrats (agents) to hold up
citizens (principals), and willingness to pay bribes is correspondingly lowered.
In the case of the Rural Farmers Assistance Scheme, using ICT could assist all stages
of the application process. Computer kiosks could have forms available online.
With the help of web masters, farmers could file applications online. The
intermediary role of extension officers could be eliminated as could scope for
tampering with forms. The long chain of opportunities for delays and bribe seeking
69 Details about the system are available at: <http://english.metro.seoul.kr/government/policies/anti/civilapplications/>
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would disappear. The use of ICT in processing could make the work of screening
and assessment faster. Farmers without ‘organizational connections’ would not be
automatically disadvantaged. An ICT based system would focus attention on
necessary interdependencies and eliminate many of the ones illustrated in the cases
above. This is important because, as Guriev argues, ‘corruption in one part of a
hierarchy may stem from corruption in another part: excessive red tape may emerge
due to potential corruption; bribes may be extorted because of potentially high red
tape. When trying to make public bureaucracy more efficient, one should keep these
interdependencies in mind in order to fight causes rather than consequences’ (Guriev,
2004: 489).
ICT based systems can be designed to improve transparency. A famous saying is
that ‘sunshine is the best disinfectant’ (Franklin, cited in Kang, 2001). The Rural
Farmers Assistance Scheme could be reconfigured so that farmers could check the
status of transactions. It would be possible to enable farmers to monitor, through the
Internet, the entire process in the handling of rural farming assistance applications.
Farmers could check from a personal computer screen whether the application has
been received properly, who is handling the case, how the case is being reviewed,
when final approval is to be granted, whether there are any complications and, if so,
why. All application documents could be required to show the name of the public
official in charge and their contact details so that citizens who wish to monitor the
processing of their applications are able to contact the responsible official directly
via the internet. The problems of distance in terms of education and social status that
beset poor farmers could be ameliorated. No official could sit on a case without
justifiable reason or make arbitrary decisions. Free access to all stages of
administrative procedures would eliminate the need for personal contact with a
particular official and for paying ‘speed money’. Without making telephone calls or
visits, farmers could monitor the processing of their applications through the Internet
whenever they wanted to and wherever they were. Where a farmer believed that
wrongdoing had occurred, he could report it to an anti-corruption commission by e-
mail or by using old forms of ICT such as telephone.
An ICT based system would also cut opportunities for public officials to exploit long
periods in the one position. As an old saying goes, ‘stagnant water breeds disease’
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(Kang, 2001). A public official assigned to one position for a long time may exploit
opportunities of agency with interested parties in his or her division. Processing
officials can be assigned on a daily basis to handle applications submitted from
different areas, and this way the tendency to exploit principals can be reduced.
Online inspections could be used to detect irregularities and take prompt corrective
action. Service improvements based on telecentre initiatives could lead to social and
economic empowerment for farmers. Turnaround time for services could be reduced
from years to months. Making rules for access to services transparent and consistent
would lead to a decentralized model of corruption control. The elimination of
intermediaries (extension services) would reduce the need for bribes (petty
corruption), freeing up resources that could be used to increase
effectiveness/efficiency of the service delivery system. However, introducing such
an initiative would place large demands on the public sector in Fiji. The use of ICT
within government has developed only gradually and without an overall guiding
strategy. For much of the time ICT has been regarded as providing services within
government agencies rather than facilitating services to citizens. There are important
considerations for employing eGovernance as an antidote to corruption reduction and
improving service delivery needs of farmers. These issues have been highlighted in
Chapter 4.10, 4.11 and 4.12 (survey results) and are applicable to the case study also.
5.4 Conclusion Through exploring the inherent agency problems in the Rural Farming Assistance
Scheme in Fiji, the case study reported in this thesis supports the case for wider use
of ICT in managing the delivery of services to users. Analyzing how processes in
submitting and determining applications for assistance by farmers could be changed
shows that ICT initiatives in Fiji could be effective tools for reducing corruption.
However, such initiatives would depend on strong leadership by government and
resolution of a large number of critical success factors (already discussed in chapter
4).
In the next chapter the researcher will present the summary of the findings based on
quantitative discussion (hypotheses testing) and case analysis in line with the
objectives, hypotheses and research questions of this study.
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Chapter 6
Summary of Findings, Recommendations and Conclusion
6.1 Introduction The thesis has examined the role of eGovernance in reducing corruption in public
service delivery in Fiji, with reference to survey analysis, exemplified by the case
study of Ministry of Agriculture, extension service delivery. The quantitative
analysis unveiled the positive contribution that ICT application makes towards
simple, moral, accountable, and responsive governance (eGovernance). The case
study elucidates the escalating principal–agent problem and issues of corruption,
which complicates the public service delivery leading to bottlenecks and
dissatisfaction.
The first chapter introduced the subject matter, key concepts were defined, a
theoretical framework was developed and the structure of the thesis was presented.
In Chapter 2 the literature review on global and pacific outlook of eGovernance in
reducing corruption in public service delivery was carried out. The related literature
was discussed and gaps in research identified with the problem statement. The
conceptual framework was mentioned and three key variables – eGovernance,
Principal-Agent and Corruption Reduction identified. This led to the development of
the objectives, hypotheses and research questions for this study.
Chapter 3 has discussed the methodological outline of this thesis. It specified and
justified the two research methods namely; quantitative and qualitative. Following
this the scope and research limitations was highlighted.
Chapter 4 explored the relationship between the three variables chosen for this study,
namely eGovernance, principal–agent and corruption reduction. The theoretical
literature indicates that eGovernance is altering the principal–agent relationship and
in turn reducing corruption. Therefore to test and explore the role of eGovernance in
doing so four hypotheses were generated for this thesis. The results in Chapter 4
indicate the positive contribution of eGovernance in altering the principal–agent
relationship and in turn having a positive impact on corruption reduction. All the
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hypotheses in this study were supported. eGovernance has a positive correlation
with principal–agent and corruption reduction and principal–agent has a positive
correlation with corruption reduction. It was proved in the survey that principal–
agent is dependent on eGovernance, implying that eGovernance interacts to induce
changes in the principal–agent relationship to effect corruption reduction. Further on,
the results prove that eGovernance and principal–agent both contribute towards
reducing corruption, by explaining 99.1 percent of the variance. Specifically,
eGovernance makes a unique and strong contribution towards corruption reduction.
The analysis further revealed the motivating factors for using eGovernance as a tool
for service delivery. In particular, the expectations of citizens from employing
eGovernance were most essential. This chapter brought to forefront key issues,
challenges and barriers in employing eGovernance as a tool for reducing corruption
in Fiji’s public service delivery.
Chapter 5 illustrated with the help of a case study the principal–agency problems
faced by citizens in Fiji and how issues of corruption emerge. A significant factor
was the reliance and dependency of citizens (principal) on bureaucrats (agents) who
seek to use their monopoly of power towards fulfilling their rent–seeking behaviour.
It was noted that agency problems led to corruption, which further burdens the
individuals who are powerless and voiceless and are not instrumental in demanding
transparent services. It is especially relevant to see the vast potential of ICTs in
reducing corruption opportunities at the intermediary level as well as at the higher
levels. In turn eGovernance can make the citizens instrumental by helping them to
transact online, which in turn can reduce the role of intermediaries. Overall,
eGovernance can make the whole process transparent by increasing accountability of
officials and bringing the system into the open.
This chapter will summarize, discuss and evaluate the major findings from the survey
and case study in alignment with the theoretical underpinnings, hypotheses, aims and
objectives, and specific research questions. Issues and challenges facing
eGovernance design and implementation as well as the success factors will be
discussed. Trends in other developing nations and the role that ICT/eGovernance
can play in reducing corruption opportunities will be highlighted. Next it will
highlight the policy recommendations and offer an agenda for future research.
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6.2 Overview of Findings The principal–agent framework is, I believe, a very useful one for thinking about the
problems in achieving accountability and transparency in public service delivery. It
is also very useful for thinking about accountability and transparency in the wider
public sector context, given that in just about every activity of the public sector—in
both its political and bureaucratic dimensions—the public sector is acting as an agent
for society as a whole, the principal. This thesis has not set the goal of totally
eliminating principal-agency problems and issues of corruption. The objective is to
minimize/reduce the likelihood of them occurring, and attaining the most transparent
and accountable service delivery possible. In this section, I discuss the various
principal–agency problems in service delivery in Fiji.
The research findings presented in Chapter 4 were elicited through a survey of a
sample of 400 respondents. The results show that corruption is growing in public
service delivery in Fiji. Three hundred and twenty-two of the 400 respondents
(80.5%) feel that corruption is increasing while another 78 (19.5 %) feel otherwise.
The respondents especially comment that bribery and bureaucratic corruption are on
the rise–which includes kickbacks, extortion, and greasing the palm. One hundred
and thirty six (136 0f 400) respondents feel that corruption is ‘fairly high’ and 186 as
‘very high’. Fifty-four of the respondents rated corruption in service delivery as
‘fairly low’ and 54 as ‘low’. The majority of the citizens in this study confirm that
corruption is increasing and on the verge of increasing even further. These survey
findings complement the findings from case study presented in Chapter 5. The case
study was based on Ministry of Agriculture, extension services. The aim of the case
analysis was to unveil the principal–agency problems inherent in Fiji. Sixty farmers
were interviewed. The farmers were asked to identify whether they are aware of
existence of bribery and whether it is rife in service delivery. Surprisingly, all the 60
farmers commented that corruption in the form of bribery is not only in existence but
rife. The findings reveal that citizens70 have accepted the stark reality that nothing
moves without adequately satisfying the concerned officials—evidence of
bribery/petty corruption.
70 Citizens here refers to both the survey respondents and farmers interviewed for case study.
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The findings (Chapter 4 and 5) also point out that due to principal–agency issues, the
time factor in getting a service has been a major bottleneck and cause of
dissatisfaction over the years. The response rate has been extremely slow and
inefficient. The survey results indicate that 82 percent of the respondents feel that
the time factor is a problem, while the case analyses shows that the time factor faced
by farmers from application stage to the final approval takes between 1 and 3 years.
The costs of applying for services were also a significant problem. In the survey of
community perceptions, 81.1 percent of respondents highlighted the cost factor as a
major problem. The survey of farmers provided a similar result, where citizens have
faced huge costs, which mushroomed all the more because of excessive
centralization, corruption and favouritism. It is described that due to lack of access
opportunities, vulnerability and voicelessness, citizens are unable to participate and
get the services they need. It is argued that corruption in one part of the hierarchy
escalates through dependency on the agents, mostly in the form of intermediaries.
Both the survey results and case study confirm these findings. Increasing
dependency by principal (citizens) on agents (intermediaries and higher level
officials) have led to cases where citizens, in failing to collude, have either been
denied a service or faced queues, and many have even been harassed and abused
(refer Chapter 5).
The service delivery system is poor with no mechanism to trace back services
delivered. The communities in Fiji lack empowerment and civic engagement. Due
to the social status of many citizens at grassroots level and distance in terms of
education and lack of access opportunities, bottlenecks and difficulties have resulted,
leading to financial and personal loss. The citizens in Fiji find it extremely difficult
to make enquiries. Those that help the public officials in fulfilling their ‘rent-seeking
behaviour’ have been able to bypass queues, manipulate rules and get favourable
outcome on their application for services. Lack of transparency in processing and
decision making on the services delivered, results in officials not being held
accountable to anyone even the citizens at large. These officials therefore are not put
under scrutiny and as a result citizens face consequences of corruption in public
dealings. The research findings further argue that in Fiji, due to the widespread use
of corrupt practices, the normal procedures and merit principles have been
abandoned. Thus, in reality the amount of money the party (citizens) are willing to
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offer has now become an important criterion to receive services from public officials
(agent). The pay-offs expedite service delivery.
The findings indicate that due to (i) monopoly of access, the (ii) degree of discretion
that officials are permitted to exercise and (iii) lack of accountability and
transparency, principal–agency problems have been accentuated and have escalated,
leading to rise in corrupt practices. This is evident in the survey results and case
analysis also. Both research methods were used to identify whether the same results
can be achieved, to answer the questions requiring ‘what is the role of eGovernance
in reducing corruption’ and how does it affect ‘principal–agent relationship’, using
quantitative data, and to answer question ‘how can eGovernance reduce corruption’
with the main objective ‘to investigate and explore the potential application of
eGovernance to curb corruption and increase efficiency and responsiveness as well
as accountability and transparency’. The case study endeavoured in opening a
window of opportunity that helped to explore the inherent agency problems and
explain the application of the eGovernance model in reducing corruption. The
results confirm the potential of eGovernance as an effective tool for reducing
corruption. It is important to note that the theoretical model developed for this thesis
is validated. The theoretical model which was drawn from the work of Klitgaard
(1988, 1995a, 1995b) and Rose-Ackerman (1978, 1994). These authors stressed
three dimensions of institutional structure which they considered as most critical in
bearing on corruption opportunities. The equation is as follows:
Corruption = Monopoly +Discretion –Transparency/Accountability
These three dimensions are evident in the case analysis and survey results. The
results indicate that ethics and morality of public officials in service delivery are low.
The findings reflect the behaviour and conduct of public servants which are largely
guided by considerations that seek to preserve their private interests. Corruption has
been in previous years and to date is still a major problem afflicting the entire public
service. The spread of corrupt practices is largely due to the above mentioned three
dimensions that lead to corruption opportunities and as a result there is no
mechanism in place to detect such corrupt practices. It is important to observe from
this research that lack of accountability and transparency is possibly the single most
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important factor leading to widening principal–agency problems and widespread
corruption in public services. The principal–agent relationship in service delivery
has been a fertile ground to petty corruption. Absence of anti–corruption measures
have further complicated the situation in service delivery. The inability and
unwillingness on the part of political elites to address methods for minimizing
corruption opportunities has led to citizens facing corruption consequences.
In order to achieve the ultimate goal of this research, namely to propose methods for
reducing corruption in public service delivery with the help of eGovernance, it is first
crucial to ascertain the awareness of Fiji’s population on this issue. In this regard,
the findings suggest that 66 percent of the population are aware of eGovernance and
34 percent are unaware. A total of 253 respondents (63.3%) contend that
eGovernance can reduce corruption in service delivery, while another 147 (36.8%)
feel otherwise.
In Chapter 2 it was highlighted that not all forms of corruption can be successfully
fought with ICTs/eGovernance. The researcher cautioned that all forms of petty
corruption can be powerfully diminished through increased transparency achieved by
employing eGovernance. Therefore, to test the above assumption, four hypotheses
were generated for this thesis. These hypotheses are discussed below:
eGovernance , Principal–Agent and Corruption Reduction
Hypothesis One states, ‘eGovernance is positively related to principal–agent and
corruption reduction’. Pearson’s coefficient correlation was conducted to test H1.
The findings in the survey reveal that the correlation between eGovernance and
principal–agent is 0.878 while the correlation between eGovernance and corruption
reduction is 0.995 and is significant at the 0.01 significance level. The results show
positive correlation, with eGovernance explaining nearly 77.09 percent of the
variance in the principal–agent variable. Similarly, nearly 99.03 percent of the
variance in corruption reduction is also explained by eGovernance. Therefore these
results support H1 in this study.
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Principal–Agent and Corruption Reduction
Hypothesis Two states, ‘principal–agent is positively related to corruption reduction’.
Again Pearson’s correlation was conducted. The findings reveal a correlation of
0.867 significant at the 0.01 significance level and r value of 0.867 indicates a
strong/large linear association between the two variables. Principal–agent helps to
explain nearly 75.17 percent of the variance in corruption reduction. Therefore, H2
was supported in this thesis.
Principal–Agent Relationship With Corruption Reduction
Hypothesis Three states, ‘corruption reduction is dependent on principal–agent (is
related)’. Chi–square test was used to test H3. Chi–square = 462.9 with p value
0.000 < 0.05, showed a significant statistical relationship between the two variables.
Therefore, H3 was also supported. Hence, this study confirms that corruption
reduction is dependent on principal–agent, indicating that a change in principal–
agent leads to a change or reduction in corruption. The findings explains that
principal–agent as an intervening variable in the study cannot solely reduce
corruption, it ‘depends’ on eGovernance to have an impact on corruption
opportunities.
Factors That Predict Corruption Reduction
Hypothesis Four states, ‘The independent variable (eGovernance) will significantly
explain the variance in corruption reduction’. Multiple regression analysis was done
to test H4. The results for multiple regression showed that r square equals 0.991.
This means that the model (which includes principal–agent and eGovernance) helped
to explain 99.1 percent of the variance in corruption reduction (dependent variable).
To determine the relative contribution of each of the variables, the beta values were
compared. The beta values in the study show that eGovernance equals 1.022 while
for principal–agent equals -0.30. This means that this variable which makes the
strongest unique contribution to explaining the dependent variable–corruption
reduction, when the variance explained by all other variables in the model is
controlled for is eGovernance. The beta value for principal–agent is –0.30, implying
it made less of a contribution. To identify the variables making significant
contribution, the significance values for the two variables were compared. The
significance values show that eGovernance equals 0.000, and for principal–agent
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equals 0.003. Since 0.000 and 0.003 are less than p value 0.05, it is making a
significant contribution to the prediction of corruption reduction. Therefore, once
again in this study H4 was confirmed.
The findings reveal that, all types of petty bureaucratic corruption can be powerfully
diminished through the increased transparency achieved by using modern electronic
media. eGovernance can make a positive contribution towards reducing corruption
by not only altering the principal–agent relationship but also by increasing
transparency and accountability which can serve as a significant contributor towards
corruption reduction.
The survey findings further supplement the results from the case study and confirm
how issues of corruption can be tackled. This thesis has suggested that with
eGovernance, rules and procedures can be simplified and made transparent and
consistent leading to a decentralized model of corruption control. The elimination of
intermediaries (extension services) can reduce the need for bribes (petty corruption),
freeing up resources that can be used to increase competitiveness. eGovernance for
service delivery will enable tighter monitoring of transactions, authenticity will help
check corrupt practices and it will be easier to identify pressure points for delay and
corruption. Significant reduction in costs (cost of paper, storage space and
processing time) can result from a paperless environment in which electronic
documents flow across workstations for approval and action (refer Survey
Questionnaire Appendix 3.1 and Case Analysis Chapter 5).
This research makes a unique contribution by assessing the perception of citizens and
public officials towards ‘compelling reasons for public services to develop and
implement eGovernance’ and identifying their ‘expectations from public service
delivery’. Prior research on eGovernance in the Pacific and also in Fiji has failed to
identify these issues (refer Chapter 2). The findings inform the compelling
reasons/motivation to use eGovernance, amongst which were: improving the
information base for decision making, improving communication between political
and administrative processes, improving internal communication flow, having
integrated information systems, better record keeping and archiving, freedom of
information data, inter-departmental coordination and cooperation, improving
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efficiency, increasing public service flexibility, increasing public safety and cost
savings. The expectations of gains from the findings for eGovernance systems were:
transparency and accountability, increased opportunity for participation in policy
making, visible impact of feedback, access to information, public service delivered
via eGovernance, bridging issues of digital divide, citizen-centred services, and high
quality and friendly and attentive services. The findings bring to light citizens
priorities in terms of transparency and accountability, openness, flexibility,
efficiency, better coordination and savings which they would like to see in public
service delivery in Fiji and which probably have been lacking. The latter absence
may explain why citizens have rated these ‘motivators’ and ‘expectations’ highly.
With all the analyses presented, this study has been able to answer research question
one: ‘Can ICTs/eGovernance increase transparency and accountability and reduce
corruption in Fiji’s public sector. If yes. How so? If not. Why not?’
It is realized that eGovernance is not a panacea. Although, ICT/eGovernance holds
great potential, the benefits of reducing corruption cannot be automatic. From
experiences around the globe (refer Chapter 2) and analysis of the findings (refer
Chapter 4), it is clear that eGovernance is a process that requires planning, sustained
dedication of resources and strong political will. eGovernance is improving the
condition of people in developing countries by improving access to information
useful to their daily lives, providing government services, and offering new
opportunities to participate in the political process. The question that comes to mind
is why are we in Fiji lagging behind? The answer lies in understanding the issues
and challenges in design and implementation of eGovernance solutions for reducing
corruption. It is with the understanding of this latter that measures can be taken to
employ eGovernance. Therefore to achieve this goal, research question two ‘What
factors contribute to success of eGovernance in fighting corruption?’, and research
question three ‘What factors can contribute to failure of eGovernance in fighting
corruption?’ will be used as a measure. These research questions were answered
with the help of the survey questionnaire. The results pinpoint thirteen requirements
for successfully employing eGovernance as a tool to fight corruption. Two hundred
and fifty-two (252) of the 400 respondents who were aware of the potential of
eGovernance responded. These requirements are presented in Figure 6.1.
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Figure 6.1: Success Factors /Requirements for eGovernance in Fiji
94
241 244180 166
241197
241204 222 240
192
103
0100200300
1
Freq
uenc
y (R
espo
nden
ts Vi
ews)
External Pressure Internal WillOverall Strategy Effective Project ManagementEffective Change Management Requisite CompetenciesEffective Design Adequate Technological InfrastructureAdequate Data Infrastructure Adequate Legal InfrastructureSufficient Time and Money Proper TimingCommunication Environment
Source: Questionnaire Results
The figure illustrates the reasons behind success and failure of eGovernance projects.
As is revealed from figure 6.1, these thirteen requirements fall under drivers and
enablers (encourage success factors). External pressure and internal will are drivers
and the other factors are enablers. It is highlighted in the survey that internal will
contributes to a greater extent as a driver for success in contrast to external pressure.
This study is similar to the study conducted by Heeks (2004) where the author states
that internal will and external pressure are both drivers, however, this thesis makes a
unique contribution whereby internal will is seen as the most important factor in
driving eGovernance projects, while external pressure is the least important overall.
Wolfensohn (1999: 9) comments on the importance of internal will and says that:
It is clear to all of us that ownership is essential. Countries must be in the driver’s seat and set the course. They must determine goals and the phasing, timing and sequencing of programs.
Wolfensohn’s comment clearly depicts that without internal will (which includes
political will and indigenous leadership) any externally driven initiative will be
useless and is bound to fail due to lack of local commitment. A similar argument is
presented by Heeks (2001a: 28) who says that ‘One man's meat is another man's
poison’. Heeks (2001a) talks about how outsiders (sometimes the vendor,
consultants or donor countries) come up with their own blueprint, and bring in
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systems that do not fit the individual country’s needs, where the ‘locus and focus of
the strategy is not always right’ (Heeks, 2001a:28), resulting in eGovernance failure.
Other enablers such as strategy, effective change and project management, effective
design, adequate legal, data and technological infrastructure, requisite competencies,
proper timing and sufficient time and money are critical success factors (see figure
6.1). Of the enablers, overall strategy (244 responses) received the most support.
However all other enablers but one (communication environment) received
significant support. Without an overall strategy that integrates ICTs with governance
mechanisms, eGovernance will not be effective in reducing corruption and
improving service delivery. Heeks (2004) cautions that many a times ICTs are either
separated from the governance mechanisms or ignored and therefore this results in
lack of communication or synergy between the two with governance goals being
mislaid. Therefore, strategic direction is critical for success in Fiji.
Effective project management has been rated by 180 respondents and effective
change management by 166 respondents. Without these, too many eGovernance
projects have either partially or totally failed (Heeks, 2001a, 2004).
Strategic challenge, which is known as the readiness level for eGovernance (Heeks,
2001a) is another significant success factor. Key questions asked of developing
country governments in order to assess how strategically prepared they are for
eGovernance include: data infrastructure, technological infrastructure, legal
infrastructure, requisite competencies, and institutional infrastructure (Heeks, 1998,
1999a, 2001a, 2004). Figure 6.1 shows that enablers such as legal infrastructure (222
respondents), data infrastructure (204 respondents), technological infrastructure (241
respondents) and requisite competencies (241 respondents) all have high rating as
success factors. Lack of e–readiness contributes to failure of eGovernance initiatives
(Heeks, 2001a; Ndou, 2004).
Requisite competencies is another critical factor, rated by 241 respondents as a
success factor. Requisite competency is described by Heeks (2001a) as the overall
awareness level, knowledge and skills (of the public sector) that are required to
initiate, implement and sustain eGovernance initiatives. Heeks comments that
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without requisite competencies it would be like ‘No captains on the bridge’ (Heeks,
2001a: 28), implying a generic lack of eGovernance leadership and commitment
amongst senior public officials (Heeks, 2001a). Ndou (2004: 14) stresses that ‘the
availability of appropriate skills is central for successful eGovernance
implementation’, and in most developing countries lack of qualified staff and
inadequate human resource training have been a major problem (UNPA and ASPA,
2001, cited in Ndou, 2004: 14). Without requisite competency, any vision or strategy
on eGovernance will not be sustainable.
Another key enabler is effective design. This has been rated by 197 respondents in
this survey as critical success factor. From a study by Heeks (2001a) and Bhatnagar
(2003, 2005) analyzing dozens of eGovernance projects, to explain and predict
eGovernance success and failure, it is highlighted that the difference between design
ideas and organizational realities should be seen. The study showed that, the larger
this design–reality gap, the greater the risk of eGovernance failure. Conversely, the
smaller the gap, the greater the chance of success. The design features consequently
covers information, technology, processes, objectives, requisite competencies,
management style and structure and other resources.
Sufficient time and money are also essential prerequisite for success which has been
rated by 240 respondents in this study. It means having ‘capacity for both
implementation and ongoing operation of the e–transparency system in public sector’
(Heeks, 2004). It has been identified in literature that insufficient time and money
leads to failure because eGovernance requires investment of time and funding to be
sustainable (Bhatnagar, 2003, 2005; Borwankar, 2004).
Proper timing has been suggested by 192 respondents. In many developing countries,
eGovernance is implemented without policy legitimization and constituency building.
In such cases, the ownership of the policy and support from key interest groups is not
forthcoming. As a result, eGovernance failure (refer Chapter 2). Therefore, timing
is crucial in that any eGovernance initiative must be carried out when support is there.
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In touching upon the issues in the study, it was noted that there are a number of
requirements for successful implementation. To summarize the implementation
challenges the following are vital elements without which failures can result.
Firstly, eGovernance requires strong political will, institutional support, and
commitment from key stakeholders.
Two, eGovernance is the application of ICTs. For eGovernance to be effective and
sustainable, it needs to be aligned with long-term strategies. Kudo (2005), Bassanini
(2003), Ahmed (2004), Mahmood (2004), Dash (2005), and Chand (2005) have
highlighted that the long-term strategies must be accompanied by institutional
measures if corruption is to be reduced in service delivery.
Three, implementing eGovernance requires having the human resource and financial
capacity. Lack of appropriate skills and lack of financial resources for undertaking
eGovernance initiatives was highlighted as a major challenge in literature (UNESCO,
2002; Guild, 2003; UNDP, 2004). Another critical factor for effective eGovernance
applications lies in the education and training of all stakeholder groups. Policy and
legal issues will need to be sorted out to ensure that rules and regulations are not
overlapping and new rules may need to be designed for effective online
communication. Also, issues relating to digital divide and social exclusion will need
to be managed. Other issues, related to the diffusion of eGovernance applications,
are related to the overall economic situation in the country, namely purchasing power,
technological infrastructure, level of gray economy, strategies of ICT companies,
property rights protection, level of trust in business, quality of education and level of
public–private partnerships.
Moreover, in implementing eGovernance, teamwork and coordination will be vital.
The findings reveal that starting with implementation of pilot projects and replicating
the successful ones in other developing countries is crucial. The pilot projects
undertaken in various developing nations should be accessed for their achievement
levels and bottlenecks and causes of delays should be documented and removed later.
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The findings reflect that priority features noted in Section 4.9, should be included in
implementation. The priority features of unique, custom fitted local content,
interactivity, multi-channel capacity, ease of navigation, reliability and citizen-
centric services should be included. It is reflected that motivating factors in
developing and implementing eGovernance (mentioned in Section 4.8 and discussed
above) and expectations of gains and perceptions of real value from eGovernance
initiatives (mentioned in Section 4.8 and also discussed above) have to be considered.
This research has further been able to answer research question two and three by
highlighting the success factors, failures and implementation challenges.
The next part is to touch upon objective three, which is to ‘illustrate the constraints to
potential application of the framework and suggest ways to overcome such barriers’.
To achieve this objective, the survey instrument was used and respondents were
asked to list the barriers in the questionnaire. The findings highlight the following
barriers in employing eGovernance in public service delivery in Fiji.
The study noted that Fiji lacks political will, leadership and institutional support.
The uncertain political environment and budget constraints are further causes of
problems. The nation is lagging behind in introducing the latest technology due to
the high cost of computers and other equipment. In addition, cultural
resistance/negative stigma and fear of public officials are a major obstacle. The
country has limited infrastructure (specifically in rural areas), a long-term
telecommunication monopoly (Telecom Fiji), slow connectivity, high cost of internet
connections, problems in power supply and lack of digitized information on public
agencies.
There is a shortage of skilled ICT workforce and computer literate population. Also
there is lack of awareness about the benefits of ICT (at grassroots level; especially a
poor/illiterate rural population) to meet development needs especially in reducing
corruption.
Furthermore, not all populations have access. Another barrier is that the government
of the day is unable to foresee financial/investment modes for building eGovernance
initiatives and there seems to be lack of cooperation from all stakeholders. In a
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similar vein, lack of cooperation from public officials—not working together with
ICT professionals in eGovernance initiatives can pose problems. However, there
also seems to be no policy agenda of eGovernance on ‘Reducing Corruption in
Public Service Delivery’.
The ultimate goal of the report is to propose applicable recommendations for the
policy area. While several reports on the potential of eGovernance in reducing
corruption are already available, there are hardly any theses that offer specific
recommendations on ‘eGovernance for reducing corruption in public service delivery
in Fiji’. This research will now answer objective two ‘Recommend how
eGovernance can be applied in terms of policy and process to curb corruption’ and
research question four ‘What environment and policy issues affect successful
deployment of ICT/eGovernance for SMART governance?’.
6.3 Recommendations /Policy Implications The Fiji Government ICT strategy is characterized by eGovernance policy, however
utilization of ICTs for achieving good governance is not put on the agenda.
Therefore, in order to utilize the potential eGovernance holds for reducing public
sector corruption (see Chapters 4, 5 and 6) the following recommendations are
crucial:
1. Set Up An Independent Anti–Corruption Commission: If eGovernance is
to be used in reducing corruption in Fiji’s public sector, then there is a need for an
agency to coordinate the e–activities. The Ministry of ICT in Fiji would the right
agency. The Ministry is currently developing the eGovernance service delivery
system for the government, but there are two main problems. The first one is that,
eGovernance has not yet been taken onboard as state policy to combat corruption in
public offices and the potential of ICT to improve service delivery to citizens is not
yet realized. The second problem is that Fiji does not have an anti–corruption
commission to deal with such issues. The government of the day should embark on
forming an anti–corruption commission and the Ministry of ICT should without
delay start cooperation with this commission once in place. The Ministry of ICT in
Fiji then should pay attention to the employment of ICTs. The coordinated effort of
the two ministries should bring the issue to the political agenda and stimulate
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cooperation with other central offices of public administration and ministries. The
commitment and support from the government and through strong political drive, the
employment of ICTs can be incorporated into the governmental strategy for reducing
corruption.
2. Long-term Strategy: eGovernance must be part of a long-term strategy. The
strategy must have a clear vision and action plans must be set forth to overcome the
barriers and challenges of eGovernance. The aim of reducing corruption must be
clearly specified to avoid conflicting objectives and it must be properly integrated
with long-term development plans. For a small nation like Fiji, we need to start on a
small scale and then slowly move up.
3. Institutional Measures: eGovernance is a ‘technology application’ to
achieve good governance. It should not be considered a panacea, or an end in itself.
For eGovernance to achieve maximum results in reducing corruption, it has to be
accompanied by institutional measures (or accompanied by other governance
mechanisms). Sound socio-economic and political institutions/processes to improve
governance (in the public sector) and increase transparency and accountability must
be built.
4. Leadership, Political Will and Commitment: Strong sense of leadership,
political will and commitment are needed to enhance policy legitimization and
constituency building, set the momentum for a shared vision and develop explicit
objectives, timeframes and benchmark measures, and allocate resources to mobilize
support towards eGovernance policy. Leadership can stimulate collaboration and
coordination among public sector agencies to increase efficiency and effectiveness in
service delivery. On a positive note, leaders can manage the challenges and
opportunities of eGovernance by working together with the private sector, donors,
civil society and research institutions/universities to generate new ideas and solutions
for effective eGovernance solution. Such cooperation can lead towards leveraging
the financial, technological and managerial strengths of the sectors involved to
ensure feasibility of eGovernance initiatives.
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5. Policy Legitimization, Constituency Building and Consultation With Key
Stakeholders: Policy legitimization is crucial to create demand for eGovernance and
increase national awareness (among both citizens and public officials) on the issue,
as well as get the support from key public officials. It is critical to dispel resistance
of public officials through training and incentives as this factor can lead to downfall
of initiatives. Constituency building can create and mobilize positive stakeholders in
favour of the eGovernance policy and consultations at the grassroots level will help
ensure that people benefit from eGovernance. In planning and designing stage, a
consultative process including opportunities to hear from and speak with key interest
groups will be important to explain the goals of the eGovernance initiative and solicit
suggestions. With this, solutions should fit the local context so that those at the
grassroots are able to participate and use eGovernance in a similar vein with the
educated class. In this regard, issues of digital divide and social exclusion can be
addressed to ensure effective participation of the Fijian community.
6. eReadiness Assessment: -readiness assessment in
Fiji. This study will help in analyzing the institutional, technological, legal and
human capacity of the public sector to employ eGovernance or new forms of ICTs
and at the same time identify the main barriers/challenges of eGovernance. Based on
this assessment, long-term strategies can be developed to strengthen institutional
capacity, develop human resources, and maintain legal and technological
infrastructure.
7. Regional Alliances: Introducing eGovernance on a regional level is also
important. Working at the regional level will allow Fiji to work with other Pacific
Island Countries to benefit from and link up to global initiatives. This way, the Fiji
Government will be able to pool its resources (the infrastructure and human resource
capacity can be built).
8. Process Reengineering, Teamwork and Coordination: It is important to
consider process reengineering before automating procedures. Strong project
management skills are needed within the public sector and eGovernance service
delivery systems should be properly designed because poor design can lead to
implementation failures. The public sector officials and ICT professionals should
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work together and eGovernance initiatives should be broadly aligned with the
explicit and implicit objectives of the government of the day.
6.4 Future Research Fiji as a developing nation has a long way to go in addressing the issues and
challenges to move towards the eGovernance framework. However, it is especially
relevant that ongoing research be carried out on ‘eGovernance for reducing
corruption in public service delivery’ to witness the role of eGovernance in tackling
issues of corruption and to instigate thinking about the propositions, the model in
general, and the anti-corruption measures so that corruption is minimized with the
help of ICTs, which in particular, have been greatly overlooked over the years. The
thesis proposes the following research agenda:
Studies of a similar nature should be conducted in other Pacific Island Countries, to
identify the extent to which eGovernance is instrumental in reducing corruption in
public service delivery. Studies of this nature will help identify similarities and
differences within the Pacific context. This will further help smaller and poorer
countries like Fiji to undertake regional eGovernance alliances that would allow
them to pool resources and gain greater efficiency at building their infrastructure.
Two, for eGovernance to effect corruption reduction, transparency and accountability
serve as subsets. Studies diagnosing the political, social, and cultural contexts that
would make deployment of eGovernance an effective tool for enhancing public
sector transparency need to be undertaken. In particular, what are the useful
eGovernance applications in the area of public services should be identified with
reference to successful applications in other developing countries, and the success of
transplanting eGovernance models should be assessed.
6.5 Conclusion The importance and vast potential of eGovernance in reducing corruption in state
delivery systems has been stressed through various studies around the globe. Even
the World Bank has used eGovernance as a means to advance the fight against
corruption and promote transparency. For the South Pacific Islands including Fiji
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however, development has been hampered by the widely varying socioeconomic
characteristics. These include the size of the population, geographical location and
the land mass. As a result, it is seen that at the grassroots level people are still
unconnected. The communication link and infrastructure problems lead to
remoteness and thus people become isolated and apathetic. They are unable to access
wider options. Due to distance in terms of education and social status, agents exploit
principals, as they have monopoly of right and discretion in administering service
delivery systems. Asymmetries of information present citizens as principals with
insuperable challenges and lot of issues of corruption arise. eGovernance in this
regard can go a long way in ensuring equal access and has the potential to increase
transparency and honesty in service delivery. It is therefore, very important for a
small developing nation like Fiji to actively pursue and formulate national policies
and strategies that will promote the information economy which eventually will
benefit the country.
However, eGovernance by no means provide the ultimate solution. There is
certainly a lot of potential but designing and implementing eGovernance systems is a
great challenge. There are a lot of risks, barriers and challenges and those countries
who have understood and adequately provided for these have gained while those who
have viewed eGovernance narrowly as a technology issue only and isolated it from
the main thrust of governance and national policy have not derived the full benefits.
The key is to ensure that the critical success factors are present. These include the
following enablers: overall ICT strategy; effective change and project management;
effective design; adequate legal, data and technological infrastructure; requisite
competencies; proper timing; and sufficient time and money.
Any sound eGovernance policy must be formulated to benefit the citizens. The
essentiality of eGovernance in Fiji ought to emanate from participatory models in
management systems. It should stress shared visions, both at horizontal and vertical
levels, of planning and management. This entails involving and educating
communities at the grassroots level in dialogue and decision making at the public
policy and practice levels. It is imperative that the citizens are to be given access and
be included so as to cope with the digital divide. Many citizens do not use
eGovernance for several reasons including lack of knowledge and understanding of
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ICT, lack of access, lack of training and concerns about privacy and security of
information. While eGovernance will make access to and delivery of public services
more easy and convenient and offer innovative government services, these will not
overly convince and persuade the citizens to use eGovernance, unless the concerns
above are adequately addressed.
The benchmark to assess the various initiatives has to essentially come from
expectations of good governance. The success of eGovernance is to be measured by
the efficiency and effectiveness brought about by the ICT based service delivery
systems. As such, eGovernance action plans should be a priority on the Fiji
Government’s agenda to implement good governance goals. This thesis has
highlighted the essential prerequisites of a successful eGovernance strategy and
argues that eGovernance should be an integral part of long-term development
strategy and could be effective tools for reducing corruption. However, such
initiatives would depend on strong leadership by government and resolution of a
large number of critical success factors.
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Appendix 2.1 : Pacific Islands ICT Profile
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bin/sendoff.cgi?page=%2Fdata%2Fcountrydata%2Fict%2Fwsm_ict.pdf&submit=Go>
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Appendix 3.1 Questionnaire No: Management and Public Administration School of Social and Economic Development University of the South Pacific Suva. Dear Participants, This questionnaire is designed to study how eGovernance can reduce corruption in Public Service Delivery by altering the principal agent relationship between the citizens (principal) and public officials (agents). The information you provide will help the researcher better understand whether as respondents the citizens in comparison to civil servants feel and see perceived benefits in terms of reducing corruption by reducing monopoly of power and increasing transparency as access increases. Because you are the only ones as citizens who can give the researcher a correct picture of the potential role of eGovernance in curbing corruption, I would be most grateful if you could respond to the questions frankly and honestly. Your response will be kept strictly confidential. Only the researcher (Rafia Naz) will have access to the information you give. This questionnaire would take no more than 10-15 minutes It is prepared in requirement for Master of Arts in Management and Public Administration for thesis titled ‘eGovernance for Reducing corruption in Public Service Delivery: A Case Study of Fiji’. I thank you for your time and cooperation and greatly appreciate your help and ensure that all the results from this survey will be used strictly for Academic Purposes Only. ___________________ Yours Sincerely, Rafia Naz Master of Arts student USP Section 1: Personal Profile
Please circle the numbers representing the most appropriate responses for you in respect for the following items: 1. Age 2. Highest Completed 3. Gender
Level of education
1 Under 25 1 Primary 1 Female 2 26-39 2 Secondary 2 Male 3 Over 40 3 University Degree 4 Professional Qualification (Please Specify) 5 Others (Please Specify)
4. Marital Status 5. Ethnicity 6.(a)Job Status (For public officials) 1 Married 1 Indigenous Fijian 1 Top Management 2 Single 2 Indo-Fijian 2 Middle Management 3 Others 3 Others (Please Specify) 3 First level supervisor
(Please specify: 4 Others (Please Specify) Divorced/Widowed)
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6.(b) Job Status(For citizens) 1 Businessmen 6 Chiefly status 2 Teacher 7 Politician 3 Unemployed 8 Students 4 Housewife 9 Others(Please 5 Church leader Specify)________
Section 2: Corruption Data and Public Service Efficiency Please circle the numbers representing the most appropriate responses for you in respect for the following items: 7. Do you think corruption in Fiji’s public sector has been increasing? 1 Yes 2 No 8. If your answer to question 7 is Yes, then please indicate whether in your view bureaucratic corruption is increasing? Example: taking bribes by public officials. 1 Yes 2 No 9. If your answer to Question 8 is yes, then please rate Fiji’s Public Service? 1 Low Corruption 2 Fairly Low Corruption 3 Medium 4 Fairly High corruption 5 Very High Corruption
10. The following set of questions seeks to gauge the effectiveness and responsiveness of Public Officials (agents) in interacting with citizens (principal).
Circling 1 means you agree 100% with the answer on the left-hand side Circling 7 means you agree 100% with the answer on the right-hand side Circling 2 means you mostly agree with the left-hand side Circling 3 means you somewhat agree with the left-hand side Circling 4 means you are indifferent between the two answers Circling 5 means you somewhat agree with the right-hand side Circling 6 means you mostly agree with the right-hand side
The time factor in dealing with Public Service Delivery:
The cost factor (including corruption) in public’s dealings with Public Service Offices
Is a major bottleneck and cause of people’s dissatisfaction with Public Services
Is not important because Public Service Delivery Response is timely and efficient
Is not relevant due to decentralization, equity and absence of corruption in service
Is a major problem due to existence of excessive centralization, corruption and favoritism in service
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Public red-tape procedures often involve more than one agency and have more than one step ___________________________________________________________________ Section 3: Awareness of eGovernance Please circle the numbers representing the most appropriate responses for you in respect for the following items: 11. Are you aware of eGovernance? 1 Yes 2 No 12 Do you think ICTs/eGovernance can curb public sector corruption? 1 Yes 2 No Section 4: Principal-Agent 13. Index of eGovernance variables that will alter Principal-Agent Relationship. How do you think the Principal-Agent Relationship with reference to using ICTs/eGovernance in fighting corruption will change. Indicate by ticking the following list of options.
There is initiative of citizen-centered government with a one-stop-shop for these types of services
Is a major problem due to existence of excessive centralization, corruption and favoritism in service delivery
ICTs will bring the different actors”(civil society, media, NGO’s, etc in fight against corruption:
Increases the transparency of the whole system without concentrating the power of control in the hands of a single institutional actor (Public Official)
Can Lead to a decentralized model of corruption control
Reduces Monopoly
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree Nor Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
ICTs/eGovernance can give the discretion to the individuals concerned to carry out transactions themselves, therefore
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ICT use will streamline bureaucratic procedures; Make operations more efficient
ICTs/eGovernance can be setup in rural tele-centres or village kiosks or a 24/7 service setup in a setting with many individuals and witnesses. Corruption becomes much more difficult if not impossible to commit
It exposes the public space thus allowing every stakeholder to remain aware of achievements and setbacks of the government.
Boundaries of responsibility and action are rendered visible -easily determining the locus of accountability.
ICTs leads to open systems with free interaction.
Better coordination and cooperation increases chances of detection of corruption
ICT’s centralizes data for improved audit and analysis
Coordination Advantages:
It also maintains tight control of transactions and authenticity helps check on corrupt activities.
Increases accountability : giving the public information it wants them to know and the public also becomes entitled to ask and pose questions they want answers to.
Leads to increased transparency and accountability due to the following:
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree Nor Disagree
Agree Strongly Agree
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14. Compelling Reasons for the Public Services to Develop and Implement eGovernance
Meaningful eGovernance is eGovernance that responds to and supports compelling and priority public sector reform, good governance and development goals as identified by national stakeholders and, particularly in the case of Public Officials to Citizen Services, with citizen input. This section seeks to identify those motivating factors and “pressure points” that should drive overall public sector reform and good governance goals, from the perspective of internal public service operations, as well as public service to citizen and business interactions.
Public Sector and Governance Motivating Factors and Pressure Points Please give us your assessment of the relevance of the following public sector reform and governance issues as real drivers, and pressure points related to internal Public Service Operations.
Low relevance Medium-low
relevance Medium relevance
Medium-high relevance
High relevance
a. Improving information base for decision making
b. Improving communication between the political and administrative
c. Internal communication (information flows)
d. Having integrated information systems
e. Record-keeping, search and archiving
f. Freedom of Information data
g. Inter-departmental coordination and cooperation data
h. Improving efficiency and effectiveness
eGovernance can make administrators more responsive , therefore they will be quick to respond to grievances; and delays which leads to increasing point of contact decreases; overall reducing chances of corruption. ICT puts public officials response and quality of service under scrutiny.
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15. Compelling Reasons for the Public to Utilize eGovernance One of the primary dimensions of eGovernance is Public Service to citizen/business (and vice versa) services and interactions. This form of eGovernance is meaningful to the extent that it responds to real governance and public service needs and priorities from the citizen and/or business perspective. This section seeks to identify the main governance and public sector reform expectations of citizens and business. Expectations of Gains and Perceptions of Real Value What are (would be) the main expectations of the public in their dealings with government?
i. Increase Public Service flexibility
j. Increase public safety
k. Cost savings
Medium-low expectation
Medium expectation
Medium-high expectation
High Expectation
Low expectation
a. Transparency and accountability
c. Visible impact of feedback (especially in politics)
d. Access to information
e. Services related to: health, education, agriculture, social welfare, land related issues, registration, ownership,
f. Government efforts to bridge the Digital Divide
b. Increased opportunity for participation in policy making and implementation
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16. In an eGovernance application, what are (would be) the priority features that would make it attractive in the local context: a. Unique, custom-fitted targeted content b. Interactivity c. Multi-channel capacity (receipt, acknowledgement, response) d. Ease of navigation (“no wrong door”) e. Reliability f. Other? Specify here and rate: __________________________________________________________________________________ Section 5: eGovernance Model 17. This section seeks to ascertain the respondents views on how eGovernance Models can be applied in Public Service(By designing possible solutions) to Reduce Principal-Agent Problems and thus corruption. A set of variables have been developed that show the Attributes (Positive features of model)and respondents are required to Tick whether they favor this model or not. Interactive Service Model
g. Citizen centered (life-cycle) Services
h. High quality of service
i. Friendliness and attentiveness
Low priority
Medium -low priority
Medium priority
Medium -high priority
High priority
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Making available the names, contact addresses, emails, fax numbers of Public Service officials online
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree Nor Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
Discretion to Conduct transactions online
Can Submit Requests in any Public service organization anytime 24/7
Check status of Query in the concerned Public service anytime
Download Information of Critical Value from the Public Service organizations
Can Receive Feedback
Free Interaction and ease of Access to information
Tight control of transactions so easy to trace transaction and authenticity helps check corrupt practice
Response is Monitored for Service Quality as per organization
Improved Communication between parties interacting
Reduces Distance Problems; Barriers of Time and Place
Strongly Disagree
Disagree Neither Agree Nor Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
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Citizen Centred Services; Friendliness and attractiveness
Time factor in dealing with Public Offices is reduced
Decentralization; Overcome Corruption and Favoritism
Streamlined procedures-operations become efficient
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__________________________________________________________________________________ Section 6: Reduced Corruption This section seeks to ascertain the respondents views on their understanding of reduced levels of corruption. A set of variables have been developed to show the positive features of less corruption and respondents are required to Tick the perceived benefits of reduced Corruption.
Ease of coordination within offices as well as between departments
Data centralization helps in improving audit and analysis; can overcome principal-agent problems
All citizens are aware of types of services offered, whom to contact etc.
Reduces monopoly of power
Responsibilities of Public Servants are rendered visible; Ease in determining locus of accountability
Middle men is eliminated
In old system citizens were subject to harassment and giving and taking of bribes; In eGovernance this is totally avoided as dependency of Public officials is reduced.
Red tape is controlled
Transparency in the whole system-including data; results etc
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree Nor Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
No middlemen; opportunity to transact online
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree Nor Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
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Streamlined procedure; no delay; quick response; response is under scrutiny
Red tape controlled; ease of monitoring transactions; can easily trace transactions more scrutiny
Rules and procedures are transparent
All decision making is transparent
Information Transparency
Increased accountability leads to decreased potential for corruption
Reduced power discrepancy-monopoly of power
Reduced hierarchal control; decentralized networks; so no information asymmetry
Improved audit and analysis
Free information flow; sharing information
Improved communication; no harassment; bribe giving
Responsive and flexible service delivery
Greater public participation in decision making
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Neither Agree Nor Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
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__________________________________________________________________________________ Section 7: Issues in eGovernance 18. What do you think are the requirements for successfully using ICTs/eGovernance as a tool to fight public sector corruption. Please tick the options. You may tick one or all the options depending on your view. Success factors Yes No External Pressure Internal Will Overall Strategy Effective Project Management Effective Change Management Requisite Competencies Effective Design Adequate Technological Infrastructure Adequate Data Infrastructure Adequate legal Infrastructure Sufficient Time and Money Proper Timing Communication Environment 19. Are there any other requirements which you feel is important for successful implementation of ICTs for fighting public sector corruption. Please list. ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ 20. What are some of the barriers of using ICTs/eGovernance in Fiji’s public sector to curb corruption? Please list down the barriers. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 21. How can these barriers be overcome? What are some policy recommendations _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 22.Any other suggestions which in your view will assist Fiji’s Public Sector to successfully employ ICTs/eGovernance in the fight against corruption? _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 23. ICTs/eGovernance on its own cannot fight corruption. It needs to be integrated into long term development policies and reform programs. In what ways can the above be accomplished in Fiji’s Public Sector?
- 208 -
Thank You Very Much For Your Time and Cooperation In Filling This Questionnaire.
Appendix 3.2 Central Division
Area Fijian Indian
Others Total
Total
Male Female Male Female Male Female Fijian Indian Others
Rural 9 8 4 5 1 1 17 9 2 28
Suva City 8 8 4 4 1 1 16 8 2 26
Suva Peri-urban 9 9 4 4 1 1 18 8 2 28
Lami Town 1 1 1 1 0 0 2 2 0 4
Lami Peri-urban 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 2
Nausori Town 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 3
Nausori Peri-urban 2 1 1 2
0 1 3
3 1 7
Other Urban 1 0 1 0
0 0 1
1 0
2
Total 30 29 16 17 4 4 59 33 8 100
Western Division
Rural 12 12 15 15 0 0 24 30 0 54
Lautoka City 2 3 3 4 1 0 5 7 1 13
Lautoka Peri-urban 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 2
Nadi Town 0 1 1 2 0 1 1 3 1 5
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Nadi Peri-urban 1 1 3 3 0 0 2 6 0 8
Ba Town 0 1 1 1 1 0 1 2 1 4
Ba Peri-urban 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 2
Sigatoka town 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 2
Sigatoka Peri-urban 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 2
Tavua Town 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 2
Tavua Peri-urban 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 2
Other urban Areas 1 0 1 2 0 0 1 3 0 4
Total 19 20 29 29 2 1 39 58 3 100
Northern
Labasa Town 6 5 6 6 11 12 1 1 13 26
Labasa Peri-Urban 6 6 6 6 12 12 1 1 13 25
Savusavu Town 6 6 6 6 12 12 1 1 13 25
Savusavu Peri-urban 5 6 5 6
11 11 0
1 12 24
Total 23 23 23 24 46 47 3 4 7 100
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Appendix 3.3: Interview List for Public Officials (Pseudonyms)
Date Interviewee Designation Organization Address Prime Reason for Interview
27/08/05 Caucau Cakacaka Senior Agricultural Officer Ministry of Agriculture Lakena Process for Farming assistance scheme and For corruption related issues in public service delivery in rural farming assistance scheme
Date Interviewee Designation Organization Address Prime Reason for Interview
1/09/05 Apisai Turagabeci Locality Field Officer Ministry of Agriculture Lautoka Process for Farming assistance scheme and For corruption related issues in public service delivery in rural farming assistance scheme
Date Interviewee Designation Organization Address Prime Reason for Interview
03/09/05 Suruj Pal Extension Officer Ministry of Agriculture Labasa Process for Farming assistance scheme and For corruption related issues in public service delivery in rural farming assistance scheme
Date Interviewee Designation
14/09/05 Daniel Singh Agricultural Officer
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Organization Address Prime Reason for Interview
Ministry of Agriculture Lakena Process for Farming assistance scheme and For corruption related issues in public service delivery in rural farming assistance scheme
Date Interviewee Designation Organization Address Prime Reason for Interview
14/09/05 Smith Raymond Locality Field Officer Ministry of Agriculture Lakena Process for Farming assistance scheme and For corruption related issues in public service delivery in rural farming assistance scheme
- 212 -
Appendix 3.4: Interview Questionnaires71 for Public Officials (Pseudonyms) Interview 1, 4 and 5
Topic: eGovernance for Reducing Corruption in Public Service Delivery:
Case Study of Fiji
Location: Lakena Extension Centre Interviewer: Rafia Naz Interviewee: Caucau Cakacaka, Smith Raymond and Daniel Singh Interviewee Job Title: Senior Agricultural Officer, Locality Field Officer, and Agricultural Officer Date: 27/08/05 14/09/05 14/09/05 Interview Start Time: 10.30 a.m 11.30 a.m 2.00 p.m Interview End Time: 11.00 a.m 12.00 p.m 3.00 p.m
Questions
1. When did the rural farming assistance scheme begin?
2. How are the farmers informed of this scheme?
3. Is this scheme for all farmers or only for certain districts?
4. What is the step by step process that farmers have to follow in order to apply for the Rural
farming assistance(RFA)?
5. What is the role of Extension Officers?
6. How long does the whole process take?
7. What is the criteria that extension officers follow?
8. What are the hierarchies/ decision making authorities that farmers applications go
through?
9. Where do farmers get application forms for filing an application?
10. If the processing is done at the rural farming assistance unit at ALTA. What is the
procedure followed by the farming unit officials?
11. How long does it normally take at each step of process at the rural farming unit?
12. How many hierarchies does the RFA forms go through at the rural farming unit?
71 Though questionnaires were used a lot of probing was done throughout the interview sessions for more detail and clarification.
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13. What is the standard criteria set by the rural farming unit to make a decision?
14. Who makes the final decision on the rural farming assistance for farmers?
15. How are the officers at the extension centers and the farmers informed?
16. What is the role of District Offices?
17. What is the role of Head Quarters?
18. As a officer at the extension centre, what are the likely places where corruption can
occur?
19. In your experiences to date, at what processes/point of contact with clients have you
seen a corrupt practice flourishing?
20. From your perspective, how transparent is the whole process of service delivery to
farmers?
21. What are some of the loop holes in service delivery?
22. From experience, what are the problems that farmers face?
23. How are the farmers problems escalated in public service delivery both from extension
officers side as well as from higher level officials who process and approve applications of
farmers?
Thank You for your kind cooperation
- 214 -
Interview 2
Topic: eGovernance for Reducing Corruption in Public Service Delivery:
Case Study of Fiji
Location: Lautoka Extension Centre Interviewer: Rafia Naz Interviewee: Apisai Turagabeci Interviewee Job Title: Locality Field Officer Date: 1/09/05 Interview Start Time: 10.00 a.m Interview End Time: 10.30 a.m
Questions
1. When did the rural farming assistance scheme begin?
2. How are the farmers informed of this scheme?
3. Is this scheme for all farmers or only for certain districts?
4. What is the step by step process that farmers have to follow in order to apply for the Rural
farming assistance(RFA)?
5. What is the role of Extension Officers?
6. How long does the whole process take?
7. What is the criteria that extension officers follow?
8. What are the hierarchies/ decision making authorities that farmers applications go
through?
9. Where do farmers get application forms for filing an application?
10. If the processing is done at the rural farming assistance unit at ALTA. What is the
procedure followed by the farming unit officials?
11. How long does it normally take at each step of process at the rural farming unit?
12. How many hierarchies does the RFA forms go through at the rural farming unit?
13. What is the standard criteria set by the rural farming unit to make a decision?
14. Who makes the final decision on the rural farming assistance for farmers?
15. How are the officers at the extension centers and the farmers informed?
16. What is the role of District Offices?
17. What is the role of Head Quarters?
- 215 -
18. As a officer at the extension centre, what are the likely places where corruption can
occur?
19. In your experiences to date, at what processes/point of contact with clients have you
seen a corrupt practice flourishing?
20. From your perspective, how transparent is the whole process of service delivery to
farmers?
21. What are some of the loop holes in service delivery?
22. From experience, what are the problems that farmers face?
23. How are the farmers problems escalated in public service delivery both from extension
officers side as well as from higher level officials who process and approve applications of
farmers?
Thank You for your kind cooperation
- 216 -
Interview 3
Topic: eGovernance for Reducing Corruption in Public Service Delivery:
Case Study of Fiji
Location: Labasa Extension Centre Interviewer: Rafia Naz Interviewee: Suruj Pal Interviewee Job Title: Extension Officer Date: 03/09/05 Interview Start Time: 11.00 a.m Interview End Time: 11.30 a.m
Questions
1. When did the rural farming assistance scheme begin?
2. How are the farmers informed of this scheme?
3. Is this scheme for all farmers or only for certain districts?
4. What is the step by step process that farmers have to follow in order to apply for the Rural
farming assistance(RFA)?
5. What is the role of Extension Officers?
6. How long does the whole process take?
7. What is the criteria that extension officers follow?
8. What are the hierarchies/ decision making authorities that farmers applications go
through?
9. Where do farmers get application forms for filing an application?
10. If the processing is done at the rural farming assistance unit at ALTA. What is the
procedure followed by the farming unit officials?
11. How long does it normally take at each step of process at the rural farming unit?
12. How many hierarchies does the RFA forms go through at the rural farming unit?
13. What is the standard criteria set by the rural farming unit to make a decision?
14. Who makes the final decision on the rural farming assistance for farmers?
15. How are the officers at the extension centers and the farmers informed?
16. What is the role of District Offices?
17. What is the role of Head Quarters?
18. As a officer at the extension centre, what are the likely places where corruption can
- 217 -
occur?
19. In your experiences to date, at what processes/point of contact with clients have you
seen a corrupt practice flourishing?
20. From your perspective, how transparent is the whole process of service delivery to
farmers?
21. What are some of the loop holes in service delivery?
22. From experience, what are the problems that farmers face?
23. How are the farmers problems escalated in public service delivery both from extension
officers side as well as from higher level officials who process and approve applications of
farmers?
Thank You for your kind cooperation
- 218 -
Appendix 3.5: Interview List for Farmers (Pseudonyms)
Eastern Division:
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
1/07/05 Chandar Ram(Case Study 1) Farmer Lakena Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
1/07/05 Shankar Suruj(Case Study 2) Farmer Lakena Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
3/07/05 Shekhar Suman Farmer Lakena Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
3/07/05 Arvind Panday Farmer Toga Process that farmers follow to apply for rural
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farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
4/07/05 Charan Jeet Farmer Wainibokasi Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
4/07/05 Shiu Prasad Farmer Tailveu Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
5/07/05 Maharaj Bhan Farmer Tailevu Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
6/07/05 Mukhtar Shah Farmer Navua Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences
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of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
6/07/05 Krishn Kumar Farmer Navua Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
7/07/05 Apisai Tora Farmer Lakena Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
7/07/05 Andriano Farmer Tailevu Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
7/07/05 Peni Turaga Farmer Toga Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
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Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
8/07/05 Jerry Tagutu Farmer Navua Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
9/07/05 Rukuruku Nailarobe Farmer Rewa Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
10/07/05 Soko Waqaliti Farmer Tailveu Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
10/07/05 Edward Radrodro Farmer Toga Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
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Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
11/07/05 Ravuiloa Farmer Naitasiri Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
11/07/05 Lui Toga Farmer Rewa Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Western Division: Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
1/08/05 Joseph Kumar Farmer Tavua Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
1/08/05 Ravin Singh Farmer Tavua Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems,
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principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
1/08/05 Ron Regan Farmer Tavua Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
2/08/05 Tutu Tekanene Farmer Tavua Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
2/08/05 Kaoa Vosayaco Farmer Tavua Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
2/08/05 Ramon Fereti Farmer Tavua Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
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Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
3/08/05 Faizal Hussein Farmer Rakiraki Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
3/08/05 Shankar Mahadevan Farmer Rakiraki Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
3/08/05 Raam Reddy Farmer Rakiraki Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
4/08/05 Maafi Tawake Farmer Rakiraki Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
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Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
4/08/05 Pita Bernadette Farmer Rakiraki Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
5/07/05 Teemaia Farmer Rakiraki Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
6/08/05 Anand Chand Farmer Ba Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
6/08/05 Mahen Reddy Farmer Ba Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
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Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
6/08/05 Gopal Krishna Farmer Ba Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
7/08/05 Vilimaina Farmer Ba Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
7/08/05 Tevita Rokotui Farmer Ba Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
8/08/05 Apisalome Farmer Ba Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
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Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
9/08/05 Kailesh Sharma Farmer Lautoka Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
9/08/05 Gopal Chandar Farmer Lautoka Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
9/08/05 Hari Narayan Farmer Lautoka Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
10/08/05 Vukikoamala Ratu Farmer Lautoka Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee
10/08/05 Sunia Vosikata
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Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
Farmer Lautoka Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
10/08/05 Benedito Drau Farmer Lautoka Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
11/08/05 Akosita Lovoitua Farmer Nadi Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
11/08/05 Vataleba Farmer Nadi Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District
12/08/05 Vika Engara Farmer Nadi
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Prime Reason for Interview
Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
12/08/05 Shiu Raj Farmer Nadi Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
13/08/05 Dharam Pal Farmer Nadi Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
13/08/05 Ronesh Kumar Farmer Nadi Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
15/08/05 Kapil Dev Farmer Sigatoka Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems,
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principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
15/08/05 Hari Kishan Farmer Sigatoka Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
15/08/05 Bimal Singh Farmer Sigatoka Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
16/08/05 Nabolaniwaqa Farmer Sigatoka Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
16/08/05 Tevita Vualiku Farmer Sigatoka Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
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Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
16/08/05 Arnold Rokotoko Farmer Sigatoka Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Northern Division: Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
1/09/05 Goundar Farmer Bua Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
1/09/05 Rup Narayan Farmer Bua Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
1/09/05 Vijay Singh Farmer Bua Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
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Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
3/09/05 Sailome Rokotoko Farmer Bua Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
3/09/05 Vilimoni Satala Farmer Bua Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
Date Interviewee Designation District Prime Reason for Interview
3/09/05 Serevi Railabi Farmer Bua Process that farmers follow to apply for rural farming assistance, bottlenecks/ problems, principal-agency problems and areas of corruption. Specifically sharing experiences of public service delivery.
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Appendix 3.6: Interview Questionnaires72 for Farmers (Pseudonyms)
1. Name (optional): _______________________ 2. District: ______________________ 3. Age: 4. Ethnicity: 1. Under 25 1. Indo-Fijian 2. 26-39 2. Indigenous Fijian
3. Over 40
4. Income level:
1. Below $F2000
2. $F2001-5000
3. $F5001-10000
5. Are you aware that bribery exists in service delivery in extension centers?
6. To what extent does bribery exist?
7. Have you ever experienced bribery by officials?
8. If you have experienced corruption. What are the problems you faced in failing to follow
the norm?
9. Have you ever given a bribe (reasons for bribery for services):
1. Get a service rendered
2. Manipulate procedures
3. Get awards
10. If you have never been involved in bribery, then do you know of anyone who has done
so?
11. Do you ever intend to involve yourself in any form of bribery/ kickbacks/greasing of
palms?
12. In your view what is likely the time factor in dealing with extension officers for
applying for rural Farming assistance?
13. What are the costs involved in trying to receive services?
14. What is the nature of public procedures like?
15. Apart from extension centers, have you ever obtained a service directly from officials at
72 All the 60 farmers were asked the same interview questions. For Case study 1 and 2, question 23 was explained in detail by only 2 farmers from Eastern division. Other tools of research such as Informal interviews, chatting and gossiping with these local farmers helped build trust. Because these farmers were located within the same district as the researcher, chatting was made easier. With this the researcher was able to obtain a detailed account of their experiences in service delivery specifically on the rural farming scheme and interesting information on corruption and agency problems.
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farming assistance unit?
16. What was the time factor, cost factor and procedures like at the farming unit?
17. What problems have you as a farmer faced in trying to fill applications for rural farming
scheme?
18. What problems have you as a farmer encountered in processing and decision stages at
the farming unit?
19. What are general problems and bottlenecks which you would like to highlight?
20. Have you faced problems of corruption? What have been the consequences?
21. What are the different forms of bribery that exist?
22. As a farmer who has gone through the process, at what points of contact/ processes have
you faced corruption?
23. Explain in detail your experiences from filing an application to the final stage?
Thank you for your kind cooperation
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Appendix 5.1: RF1 Forms
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App
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