Contextualising e-governance in the public participation debate : the Sassa electronic payment system

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: E-governance is but one of the many public participation strategies a governmentcan use to engage with its citizens. E-governance improves governmentprocesses, connects citizens and builds interactions with and within civil society.Through the provision of improved processes and information access, egovernancepaves the road to good governance goals and development targets.Governments in developing countries can benefit greatly from e-governance asthe world is technologically driven but, at the same time, the social realities ofpoverty; inequality and unemployment are becoming more apparent. Manydeveloping countries are being left behind as they do not have sufficient technicalinfrastructure and human capital to provide internet access and are thus unableto provide online services and programmes. E-government must be accessible,interactive, transactional and transformational, and services offered electronicallyshould not be seen as new, but rather as alternative methods for time saving,convenience, cost reduction and equitable distribution of services. In this study the Mooiplaas Community is used as a case study. It has becomeapparent that the electronic payment system implemented by the South AfricanSocial Security Agency (SASSA) is not accessible to its intended beneficiaries.This study argues that authentic and empowering public participation based onan appropriate mix of context-specific strategies is required for the SASSA tosuccessfully implement their electronic system. The public must be affordedspace to influence, direct, control and own the development it is introduced to. Inthe light of the model developed in this study for public participation thatempowers communities, it is evident that public participation in Mooiplaas is atthe level of tokenism, yet the ideal level is that of public control whereby the publicinfluences, directs and takes ownership of its own development. This study adopted a qualitative research method. Interviews were conducted onthe basis of probability sampling to collect primary data. An evaluative researchdesign was used, aimed at answering the question of whether a developmentintervention programme or strategy has been successful or effective. A publicparticipation strategy has been developed to achieve the appropriate level of public power with the consequence of improved service delivery, free fromcomplaints and protests.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University