An Evaluation Analysis of E-government Development by Local Authorities in Australia

Abstract

Local governments play an important role in moving forward towards the vision of a connected and responsive e-government. This research develops a set of evaluation criteria for evaluating local council's websites. By examining the current status of the local government websites, this research provides an overview of the level of sophistication of the e-local government development in Australia. The local governments in Australia have not developed truly sophisticated e-government services. The majority of the local government websites are primarily informational and they provide one way communication of information from government to citizens.

To identify the factors affecting the level of sophistication of local council's websites, a single case study approach is employed in this research. Top leadership support and management capacity and organisational and technical challenges are considered important for e-government development. User-centric website design and bridging the digital divide also play a role in the successful implementation of e-government.

Keywords:

• Australian local government websites
• e-government
• factors affecting e-government development
• evaluation criteria for local government websites

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

I acknowledge with gratitude funding from University of Western Sydney, Australia, for this project. I also thank the interviewees in the local council for agreeing to discuss the issues with us.