The first wave of e-government offered significant benefits to constituents, with tens of millions of transactions now delivered online. Despite the plethora of new services, government itself has not been transformed. The next step is for government to move into the information age as it faces increasing pressure to do more with less. 

It is clear that conventional government is unable to address society’s challenges alone and would be in a much better position if it could truly partner with other governments, not-for-profits, businesses and citizens to tackle immense policy changes.

Government 2.0 is the answer. As technology deepens its day-to-day impact and is increasingly used by successive generations, governments at all levels will have no choice but to embrace it, thereby overhauling the way they lead, serve and interact with stakeholders.

Why is this so important? Because it’s a strategy that allows today’s public sector organizations to reach across jurisdictions to access critical knowledge, adapt themselves to a fact-changing societal landscape and significantly improve their ability to deliver the services to which citizens have become accustomed.

Of course, developing a “Government 2.0” culture is more involved than simply setting up a wiki or a blog. It requires leadership, investments in technology, organizational change, and risk-taking to overcome cultural, process, technology and policy hurdles.

In the end, increased levels of collaboration will result in enhanced service delivery through all operational and policy-making functions of government.  This culture will allow tomorrow’s government to do more with less.

Download the complete report, Change your world or the world will change you: The future of collaborative government and Web 2.0.