Canada in danger of losing leadership in government online: Yankee Group

The federal government says all the right things about getting government services online, but it has been slow in turning those words into actions. As a result, Canada is in danger of falling behind other countries when it comes to e-government, says a recent report. The Yankee Group recently released Electronic Officialdom: The Canadian Government Online, a study of the implementation of federal services on the Internet. It cites work that has been done through programs such as the Community Access Program (CAP) and SchoolNet. "Programs such as Government On-line, CAP, and SchoolNet, however, will not be as advantageous without broadband access in remote parts of the country," senior analyst Jeremy Depow writes. "Canada’s federal government will have a lot of work to do to not only provide the content, but to provide access as well." The official reason given for the government’s backtracking on the broadband initiative was the need to redeploy assets following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. But others note that the proposal has been handled by three ministers at Industry Canada – John Manley, who announced the creation of the National Broadband Task Force; Brian Tobin, who received the final report; and Allan Rock, the incumbent. All are touted as possible Liberal party leaders, as is the man who controls the purse strings, Finance minister Paul Martin. "I think a lot of people also recognize that spending the money on broadband, these kind of government services, would help spur the economy and create more opportunity for small and medium businesses, which are the strong base of any economy," Depow tells Network Letter. "And there was a lot of division within the Liberal caucus, and it looks like this became a casualty of that. It was more to do with the inner politics of the Liberal party than what’s needed for the country." Depow believes U.S. president George W. Bush’s recent proposals for broadband could propel that nation past Canada in the push for connectivity. Among those urging a broadband strategy for the United States is Connecticut senator Joseph Lieberman, who was part of the Democratic ticket in the 2000 election. But some question how prepared the Americans truly are. George Samenuk, chair/CEO of Network Associates Inc., told reporters recently in Ottawa that Canada was far more sophisticated than his country in terms of telecommunications and the Internet. "It’s like night and day," he stated. He added that at a recent meeting between U.S. government officials and Network Associates executives, concern was raised about the lack of preparation. Attorney-General John Ashcroft told his visitors "the government is dealing with paper and pencil" while others are employing high technology.

Canada in danger of losing leadership in government online: Yankee Group

News | 03/12/2002 5:00 am EST

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