Scalability and Sustainability of M-Government Projects Implementation in Developing Countries

Abstract

Mobile technology has played a crucial role in facilitating democratic change in many of the developing countries. Many countries have attempted to implement Mobile Government (m-government), which is a form of electronic government, using mobile and other latest technologies such as social media as the most fundamental infrastructure for implementing such changes. However, m-government projects' scalability and sustainability are amongst the key issues relating to the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). This chapter attempts to discuss the scalability and sustainability of m-government projects in the context of developing countries. The aim is to provide a broader understanding of the inherent issues surrounding scalability and sustainability of m-government projects: in general terms and also in relation to mobile phone-based projects for governments' service delivery. In order to understand these issues, definitions of these two concepts are provided and various e-government maturity models are discussed. This is then followed by an overview of the challenges of scaling up and sustaining the m-government projects in developing countries, and lastly, an elaboration of how sustainability and scalability can be achieved is also presented.