Factors influencing readiness for transformational e-government: a perspective of local governments in South Africa.

Abstract

The purpose of this article was to explore the readiness of local governments (municipalities) in South Africa to transform to be able to deliver services to its citizens using ICT. The study applied Structuration Theory (ST) and drew on the concepts of duality of structure and action particularly: the enactment of technology-in-practice (ETiP) as a lens to understand and interpret the social construct. The objective was to determine the factors contributing to the readiness of municipalities to adopt ICT to transform the way and manner they deliver essential services to the public. The concept “Transformational e-Government” (TeG) is discussed in this paper to analyse the determinant factors influencing service delivery. This paper aimed to analyse the readiness of South African local government when rendering services through information and communication technology (ICT). An interpretive case study research methodology where structured interviews were used to collect data was applied. The findings were that out of the 15 municipalities interviewed only 7% were ready for TeG initiatives, 60% were near ready and 33% have a long way to go to implement TeG initiatives. The results also showed that 5 out of the 8 Metro Cities in South Africa were ready to implement TeG initiatives successfully. The implications of the study were that, the ST is able to provide the lens through which to understand, interpret and determine the factors contributing to the readiness of municipalities to implement TeG to improve service delivery.