Evaluation of municipal e-government readiness using structural equation modelling technique

Abstract

The evaluation of municipal e-government readiness can provide a useful barometer to understand the critical needs of citizens. In addition, it can help to improve effectiveness of government services and provide a technology industry access to relevant information to create efficient e-services. This study develops and tests a framework to evaluate municipal e-government readiness based on building blocks of supporting e-services readiness, individual citizen readiness, municipal government readiness, technological infrastructure readiness and supporting industries readiness. The process of evaluating municipal e-government readiness utilises data obtained through a survey of 219 respondents from four municipalities in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The partial least square structural equation modelling technique was used for data analysis. The study results show that the investigated building blocks are significant determinants of municipal e-government readiness with an overall 81% goodness-of-fit performance. The results provide foundational information for policymakers and practitioners who are interested in propagating e-government readiness. Factors that determine municipal e-government readiness could provide new insights on future studies about e-municipality service improvement.