The internet is now the preferred means of accessing government agencies in Australia, according to a newly released study on user satisfaction with e-government services.
“When the internet is an option, in 2011 nearly half of Australians (47%) used it in their most recent contact with government,” Special Minister of State Gary Gray said in a media release.
“Nearly half (46%) also said they preferred the internet over other forms of contact. The research also found there has been significant growth in the use of mobile phones and similar portable devices to access websites,” he added.
The Australian government launched its e-government strategy in 2006. Gray disclosed that back then, only 19% of Australians used the Internet for contacting government.
The strategy, according to then Special Minister of State Gary Nairn, attempts to deliver a more coordinated and citizen-driven focus to the government’s e-government initiatives. Among the goals it has set for 2020 is the full integration of online, electronic and voiced-based services to government service delivery.
"e-government is about more than just applying ICT to government processes. It is about applying ICT to reform and improve government processes. Merely applying ICT to something does not make it better. But applying ICT, and reforming the accompanying business processes, does," he said.
Six years into the implementation of the e-government initiative, six studies have also been conducted to measure how well the government has delivered into the promise of an interactive and fully accessible government. The sixth and most recent study showed that Australians continue to embrace the internet as a way of interacting with government.