What is GovTech?

GovTech is a new and rapidly developing field that will become a significant part of the tech landscape in the coming years, but what exactly is it? And what does the future of this industry look like?

Technology That Allows Governments To Engage Their Citizens

Digital government services often have a bad reputation in many places worldwide. Compared with the digital experiences offered by private companies, citizens often find government apps and websites convoluted, clunky, and poorly integrated. And in some cases, there may be no digital solution available at all (the person would have to call or visit a physical office to receive help).

There are many reasons for this poor reputation. For example, government agencies typically have tight budgets and have to be frugal and deliberate about choosing new technologies. Additionally, governments are often hesitant to implement emerging technologies, instead preferring to wait until the solution is proven effective. As a result of these factors and others, the public sector trails far behind the private sector in meeting the digital expectations of modern users.

This is where GovTech comes in. GovTech aims to modernize the public sector through innovative tech products and services to improve user (citizen) experience. It addresses the disconnect between citizen expectations and the public sector and helps save public resources through improving efficiency.

Examples and Goals of GovTech

GovTech aims to bring government services to the 21st century, and a vital element of this is digital transformation. Digital services needed to be updated, or created from scratch, to improve user experiences. Here are some examples of GovTech in action:

Digitizing and Automating Applications and Appointments - Citizens often need to acquire permits, apply for passports or licenses, apply for planning permission, or book appointments for specific government services. GovTech aims to bring as many of these services online as possible, eliminating the need for citizens to leave their homes or pick up the phone.

• Tech-driven Analytics Solutions - These include any solutions where the government utilizes analytics to help improve government services. For example, road safety analytics systems can analyze which city areas experience the most vehicle accidents or traffic jams. Armed with this information, the government can launch new projects to improve traffic flow and road safety.

• Engagement Platforms - Engagement platforms allow governments to survey citizens or engage in an open dialogue about the changes they want to see. These solutions are a modern example of a town hall meeting.

• Improving Integration - Many government systems and databases are siloed and operate independently. This leads to situations where citizen data is inconsistent across services, or citizens need to make an entirely new account each time they engage with a new service. GovTech aims to unite, connect, and integrate these systems for citizens to experience a seamless experience across services.

• Improving Efficiency - Includes solutions that remove friction or promote speed to government services. It applies to internal and external processes. For example, online identification and electronic signatures allow applications to be processed faster. Internally, workflow and task management systems ensure that public sector employees are held accountable for their tasks, and nothing is missed.

• COVID-19 - The coronavirus pandemic revealed the need for governments to adopt technology and digitize services to meet public needs. For example, many governments allowed citizens to apply for financial relief through an automated government system.

Challenges of GovTech

Governments face many challenges when implementing new technologies, and these challenges can be major roadblocks to progress. Here are some of the major challenges that stand in the way of GovTech adoption:

• Trust in government institutions is often low, leading many citizens to mistrust new services. Therefore, transparency needs to be a top priority for governments aiming to boost citizen engagement.

• Some departments have a small budget with little left over for digital transformation.

• Government systems are a significant target for cyber attackers, so extra care and attention need to be paid to cybersecurity.

• Governments need to ensure that new solutions don't exacerbate existing issues surrounding accessibility and literacy.

• Leadership buy-in is crucial to success but not always easy to get.

The Future of GovTech

The GovTech industry is rapidly growing, and governments are starting to take notice. The new solutions coming onto the market every day are influencing how governments look at their budgets and plan for the future. Today, government agencies are setting aside more money to implement and maintain digital solutions. We expect this trend to increase as we move through the 2020s, with online government services becoming a ubiquitous part of modern life.