“Korea’s software technology is advanced and its software brands are top-rate, but the entire software industry is too poorly structured to promote and use domestically developed software programs,” said Korea’s pioneer of e-government programs Dr. Cho Sung-kap, a research professor at the Graduate School of Information Management and Security of Korea University.
Dr. Cho made the remarks when he was interviewed by the Korea IT Times on Aug. 18. “Scores to hundreds of firms have developed such technology. But it is the government that should help them find overseas markets, given their lack of sufficient supply of language experts,” he also said. “It’s necessary to launch an export council to streamline exports of Korea’s advanced e-government technologies to foreign countries.”
Dr. Cho graduated from Sungkyunkwan University and studied at Harvard Business School. He worked for IBM Korea from 1980 to 2001. He also served as director of the International Cooperation Agency for Korea IT (ICA) under the now-changed Ministry of Information and Communication from 2002 to 2005, and as vice president of Hyundai Information Technology in 2006. He has been teaching at Korea University since 2007.
Q: What is the current status of the e-government project
A: It is true that each office and agency in the three government branches has a well-planned e-government system. But from each citizen’s point of view, different government offices maintain their own file service systems. As a result, civil petitioners have to spend extra expense and time as they have to visit different offices at the legislative, executive and even judicial branches when they want to file petitions or apply for various kinds of certificates.
For example, when you need a copy of a corporate register to submit to a government office, you will have to obtain a copy from a court and present it to a government office. Except for certain documents each government office should keep to their own system for security reasons, it is necessary for government offices to share administrative information among government agencies as soon as possible. The idea is to supply the people with quality administrative services in an efficient way by combining services currently provided by many different offices separately.
Q: What efforts is the government making to develop e-government technology and provide its services
A: Each government office began its own e-government services according to their own priorities. But as a result, government offices have now come to face such a problem. There has been trial and error in implementing the e-government system. We should take this into consideration when exporting goods or developing new projects. It is necessary to lay a firm foundation based on information systems planning (ISP).
Cyber security is so important that it is necessary to take precautions against computer viruses or hacking from the stage of design and planning. Of course, it needs a budget. In case of the United States, the Department of Defense earmarks 8 to 10 percent of the entire IT development budget for security programs, but Korea allocates a mere 1.6 percent.
Korea should now develop enterprise information architecture (EIA) models, though belatedly, to combine and streamline the functions of e-government services.
Q: When did the Korean government begin its e-government services
A: It’s a long history. It was in the late 1980s that the government started computerizing resident registration data using the early IBM personal computer XTAT model. But it was around 1998 that the government began administrative work more systematically, under the slogan “IT Korea.”.
Q: Was it started out of government necessity or out of the private sector’s need
A: At that time, the government believed that though we had been late in industrialization, we should not be late in ushering in the era of knowledge and information society. From the standpoint of enhancing the quality of administrative services for the people, the government took the initiative to begin computerizing civil documents, such as family, resident and real estate registers. This so-called mechanization of civil documents was the start of everything about the present-day e-government system.
Q: Tell us about the process of the technologies having been developed to a high level.
A: At first, every document was handled with hands, and then automation led to increasing productivity, which required much manpower and money. Automation or computerization began to be used as a tool to win competition with rival companies or with other government offices based on a management information system (MIS) or a strategic information system (SIS). Until this stage, much budget and manpower were used. After this stage, companies or government offices sought ways to create revenues by providing services to other companies or government agencies.
After finishing work for sister companies in their individual groups, companies, such as Samsung SDS and LG CNS, earned revenues by working for other companies or government offices, making the most of their own manpower, experience and facilities. Likewise, the government now has the capacity to help foreign governments in building e-government systems, with accumulated experience and technology. This will help the country build national wealth and earn foreign currencies by transferring the know-how and technology and exporting e-government programs to those countries that have not yet developed their own systems. This will also be a way to ascertain Korea’s status as a powerhouse of information technology in the 21st century.
Q: What is the level of Korea’s e-government technology
A: Generally speaking, if not the top level, Korea ranks almost next to Sweden, Denmark or the Netherlands, the first-rate powerhouses of e-government technology, in terms of such technology.
Q: Is there any success story of the government’s export of e-government technology to foreign countries
A: No, Not yet. Some enterprises have exported such technology, which I’m reluctant to call anything related to e-government technology. Even though the Public Procurement Service has promoted the technology overseas, no foreign countries have yet begun using our e-government technology. Only some Korean firms exported e-systems to China for its subway system and Vietnam for its agricultural cooperative system. But Korea has not yet exported its e-government system to foreign countries to help them automate and computerize real estate, visa, resident and vehicle registration, tariff systems.
Q: How many companies have participated in developing such an e-system
A: Scores to hundreds of firms have participated and accumulated experience in developing such technology. As a result, they have accumulated lots of capabilities, manpower, and know-how. But it is the government that should help them find overseas markets, given their lack of sufficient supply of language experts.
Q: What should we do next
A: One man’s meat could be another man’s poison. Likewise, a good system for us could be a bad one for another country, considering the difference between countries in national traits, customs, and legal and tax systems. We need to consider exports of our e-government system after having consultations with them.
It’s necessary to check beforehand what the present status is, how to apply this in the automation process, what are advantages and disadvantages, and what backup system there is. Only when the process is implemented based on the ISP then can we operate this system stably. Based on this, we can receive a positive evaluation, win orders for maintenance or follow-up projects, and then have the opportunities to earn foreign currencies in the long term.
Q: Why do you believe the government should export e-government technology
A: As members of the knowledge information society, we’re living in an era when traffic, communications, and IT systems have been developed, and when more than 53 percent of global trade is implemented under FTAs. In this situation, we need to consider competition with foreign industries, if not foreign countries. Be it the government or enterprises, they should not be squeezed out of market for lack of timely supplies of accurate data. Once they are pushed out, their defeat could lead to the loss of national competitiveness as a whole.
Q: What benefits could the exports of the e-government technology give to foreign countries
A: Trial and error inevitably occurs in doing anything for the first time. But fortunately, we have already made many trials and errors over the past decades. And our accumulated experience is stored in the form of technology and know-how. So if we are given the opportunities, we can make sure that they attain their goals within their planned timeframe, without undergoing such trials and errors as beginners normally do.
Many Korean IT experts, say 800,000 of them, have sufficient experience in building e-government systems. Simply, we have technology, manpower, and experience in this regard. Korea has been rated top among countries of the world by Brown University in the United States, and third to fourth by the OECD in terms of e-government technology. I’m sure that such “official ratings” of Korea’s e-government technology level will be helpful to encouraging foreign countries to establish partnerships with Korea.
Q: Then, how do you think the government should do to avoid conflicts of interest between government agencies
A: The Ministry of Public Administration and Security is in fact in charge of spearheading and implementing e-government systems. But it’s necessary to launch a combined government system that can deal in an organized way with exports of e-government systems to foreign countries to avoid conflict of interest between government agencies.
In terms of technology, experience, and manpower, we have enough resources, including undergraduate and graduate students. It’s necessary to launch an export council as soon as possible to coordinate export projects among government offices. In the past, the Ministry of Information and Communication took charge of operating an export council whose chairman was the minister and I was its vice chairman. I believe the government should launch such a council as soon as possible.
Q: Are you going to suggest its launching to the government
A: I’ve already suggested it through a newspaper. But regrettably, it has not materialized yet. I’ll continue to call on the Ministry of Public Administration and Security to accept my idea. It’s necessary to approach this issue in a more systematic and organized way.
Q: Which countries do you think the country should target for its exports
A: First of all, any countries with similar cultural backgrounds and a large population would be good, for example, China Vietnam, Indonesia and other Southeast Asian nations.
Q: How should we export the e-government technology
A: It’s necessary to form taskforces that will handle regions, lines of business, solutions, respectively. Such project taskforces should work in a systematic and organized way. IT technology in the software sector, is “invisible,” “immeasurable,” and “intangible.” It’s necessary to establish “business counterpart relationships” with foreign experts.
Q: Please tell us if there is anything to be desired. And what would you say desired effects would be
A: Every morning, you click on MS Windows without giving it any serious thought. Nearly nobody can make do without MS Windows. Regardless of our country’s development in e-government technology, we’re importing software devices and technology operating systems, as well as database and program languages for it, 100 percent. It’s necessary to develop and produce Korea’s own database and program languages quickly. Enterprises should make efforts to develop them with the sufficient support from the government, so that Korean e-government technology services and products can be made with Korean components and technology.
It is now time to implement a full-fledged e-government system, now that we have relevant technology. Conglomerates should make proper investments. Conglomerates should learn from small enterprises, and the government should provide them with more support to build a full e-government system.
Global software market is worth about US$820 billion, with Korea achieving a mere $200 million in sales. The government or conglomerates should make more efforts to increase their share. But we should catch up with other countries by developing software on our own.
In hindsight, when CDMA technologies were commercialized in 1996, the government in fact gave up focusing further on software development, as it was difficult to “catch two birds with one stone” with a limited budget. Priority was shifted from software to communications at that time. The result is what you’re looking at now in the country. Back then, nobody expected the aftermath would be this serious.
