This paper reports on a case study where the Namibian environment is used, to gain a deeper understanding of the factors that influence e-governance and how those factors manifest themselves. This study is motivated by the continuous challenges that are encountered by many African countries, either in the development or implementation or both, of the e-governance solution. The interpretive approach was employed, and qualitative data were gathered using the semi-structured interview technique. Activity theory was used as a lens to guide the analysis of the data, from which six factors were found to influence the implementation of e-governance in the country. The factors are 1) know-how; 2) requirements of both technical and non-technical components; 3) political will, which draws on power to make decisions; 4) heterogeneity; a repertoire of actors; 5) power relationship and 6) governance, which includes standards, policies, and principles. The empiricism nature of the study enhances the implementation of the e-governance solution, which can result in improved service delivery in the country.
In Namibia, there is a problem of integration between eHealth and eGovernance. This problem has resulted in the fragmentation, decentralisation, and duplication of processes and patient data. These challenges lead to bigger health problems because diagnoses are duplicated, and rates of mortality increase. From the governance angle, service delivery deteriorates owing to lack of transparency and so accurate evaluation of service quality. This study used an interpretivist perspective to identify the factors that can influence the integration between eHealth and eGovernance in the Namibian environment. A total of 66 papers from the years 2011-2020 were deemed relevant to the study and categorized according to topic and year of publication. Based on the factors identified in the data analysis, the challenges identified were conceptualized in terms of how to address the problem of integration between eHealth and eGovernance in a developing country like Namibia.
This paper reports on a case study where the Namibian environment is used to gain deeper understanding of the factors that influence e-governance and how those factors manifest themselves. This study is motivated by the continuous challenges that are encountered by many African countries, either in the development or implementation or both, of the e-governance solution. The interpretivist approach was employed, and qualitative data were gathered using the semi-structured interview technique. Activity theory was used as a lens to guide the analysis of the data, from which six factors were found to influence the implementation of e-governance in the country. The factors are know-how; requirements of both technical and non-technical components; political-will, which draws on power to make decisions; heterogeneity; a repertoire of actors-power relationship; and governance, which includes standards, policies, and principles. The empiricism nature of the study boosts knowledgeability of the challenges that hinder implementation of the solution, which in-turn affect service delivery.
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