The use of ICT will play an increasingly important role in the delivery of citizen-centric services. Government is very much committed to reviewing its operations in order to move towards electronic delivery of government services. The vision is to move to multi-channel, mixed public and private delivery of citizen-focused services 24 hours a day and 7 days a week through the use of modern technologies.
The e-Government concept paper, prepared by the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology in 2002, sets out the Government’s vision for the transformation of the delivery of public services.
In this context, on top of the back-end systems in Ministries and Departments, several other projects are materialising in parallel under the e-Government programme to bring government services closer to the citizens and businesses, namely:

Government Online Centre (GOC)

Government Intranet System (GINS)

Capacity Building

Electronic Service Delivery

ICT Manual for Civil Service

IT Security

e-Government Interoperability Framework (e-GIF)

Government e-mail Services (GES)

Government Online Centre (GOC)
The Government Online Centre (GOC) is the focal point through which citizens and businesses can interact electronically with the Government. The GOC is located in the Cybertower at Ebene. It provides Internet connectivity as well as e-mail facility for the entire Civil Service. It is also a central repository for some applications and databases for Ministries and Departments. A Government Portal is also part of the GOC and provides a window on Government Online Services to the public and businesses. The Government Online Centre is operational since May 2005.

Government Intranet System (GINS) - Interconnection of Governmental bodies
An important component of the e-Government infrastructure is the Government Intranet System (GINS) which connects individual government departmental networks into a secure intranet. This facilitates collaboration, information sharing and co-ordination of activities within the Civil Service.
GINS is operational since the coming into operation of the GOC.

Capacity Building
The human factor is also a key component in any e-Government initiative. Officers need to be skilled to operate the systems and, for effective implementation and operation, there is need to develop a sense of user ownership and accountability. In line with this observation, Ministries/Departments have designated Chief Information Officers to champion and drive computerisation projects within their organisations to successful completion and, thus, help to make e-Government a reality. A training programme is ongoing to impart public officers with the required skills to harness ICT.

Electronic Service Delivery
E-Government also rotates around identification and prioritisation of services that can be offered electronically. A survey of services was conducted by the Ministry of Information Technology & Telecommunications in this area. Based on selected prioritisation criteria, a few services such as application for scholarships, application for lump sum, application for vacancies at PSC, application for learner's driving license and apllication for work permit were identified for immediate implementation to demonstrate visible and tangible benefits of e-Government to the people. These services are available electronically since May 2005. Other services are being gradually added for online delivery.

ICT Manual for Civil Service
The ICT Manual is a document that describes the computerisation process within the Civil Service. It provides a comprehensive set of guidelines, standards and procedures with regards to ICT implementation stages and ICT services (e.g. system development, project management, procurement and maintenance of equipment, e-mail usage, security)
The document serves as a guide to all Ministries and Departments that plan to embark on computerisation projects. It is of non-technical nature and is targeted at Heads of Ministries and Departments, Chief Information Officers and the Civil Service community at large. It can be consulted by any public officer just as is the case with Personnel and Financial Management Manuals.

Information Security
Government has approved the implementation of ISO/IEC 17799 Security Standard across the Civil Service. These standards provide a structured approach to address security within an organisation. The standards have already been implemented at four pilot sites (Civil Status Division, Treasury Department, Passport and Immigration Office and Ministry of Social Security, National Solidarity, Senior Citizen Welfare and Reform Institutions (Contributions Branch)). These standards are now being rolled out across the Civil Service.
An IT Security Unit has also been set up within the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunications and it will assist Ministries and Departments in the implementation of the security standards. This unit will also carry out internal security auditing and assist in the selection of firms for conducting external auditing.

e-Government Interoperability Framework (e-GIF)
The e-Government Interoperability Framework (e-GIF) sets out the government’s technical policies and specifications for achieving interoperability and information systems coherence across the public sector. The e-GIF defines the essential pre-requisites for joined-up and web enabled government. The main thrust of the framework is to adopt the Internet and World Wide Web specifications for all government systems. There is a strategic decision to adopt XML and XSL as the core standards for data integration and management of presentational data. The e-GIF is a cornerstone policy in the overall e-Government strategy.

Government e-mail Services
The Government e-mail Services (GES) Project was initiated by the Ministry of IT and Telecommunications in 2001 and provides senior officers (as from the rank of Higher Executive Officer) of the Civil Service with e-mail accounts. The e-mail web service is available at http://mail.gov.mu. The Central Information Systems Division (CISD) is responsible for creating and maintaining accounts for Government officers and providing first-level support. The CISD also operates a help desk at 211-2480 for technical assistance. An e-mail usage policy document has also been circulated to Ministries/Departments. This document clarifies the applicability of law and of other Civil Service policies to electronic mail. It also defines new policy and procedures where existing policies do not specifically address issues particular to the use of electronic mail. With the coming into operation of the GOC, the e-mail facility is being extended to other grades.

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