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E-ParliamentsDownload Main Report | Download Annexes | Download Main Report - French | Download Annexes - French
BackgroundParliaments are one of the main pillars of democratic societies, and consequently play a key role in the promotion and enhancement of democracy and democratic values. In the last decade or so, the number of democratic regimes have reach an unprecedented peak, many of them being developing countries. And Parliaments have followed a similar trend.In spite of the rapid global deployment and use of ICTs in the various economic and public spheres, it is surprising that its use in Parliaments is lagging, at least in relative terms. On the other hand, deploying ICTs in Parliaments per se and without a clear strategy to foster the core functions of the institution can lead to dissappointing results. Thus, technology alone cannot provide any comparative advantage to Parliaments as democratic institutions or Member of Parliaments (MPs) as representratives of their consituencies. FrameworkIn this context, e-Parliament can be defined as the use of ICTs in Parliamentary institutions with the objective of enhancing and strengthening their three core functions: legislation, oversight and representation. An analysis of the potential of ICTs in connection with the three core functions of Parliaments leads to the development of the following framework:
The framework focuses not on the use of ICTs, but rather on the way Parliaments execute their core business and the impact that ICTs can have when deployed strategically. The framework suggests how generic or specific ICT applications can be brought into the core functions of Parliaments. The starting point for supporting the use of ICTs in Parliaments, however, is not the deployment of the latest technology, but rather a comprehensive understanding of the way in which Parliaments operate within their national context. The identification of critical or priority areas in which ICTs could be deployed for maximum impact is also essential to secure buy-in and ownership by the institution and the MPs themselves.
StudyAt the request of the European Union, UNDP conducted a feasibility study on how the use of ICTs can empower Parliaments and MPs at both the national and global levels. The focus of the study is on Parliament as an institution and aims at assessing the overall status on the availability of, and support for, ICTs in Parliament in various countries.One of the main findings of the study indicates that e-parliament is still an emerging area of work in most developing countries. Indeed, this area is still in its infancy when compared to similar work completed on National ICT for Development or e-government strategies among others. In addition, developing countries face critical challenges and gaps, ranging from access to connectivity to local capacity and governance issues. Furthermore, there are still very few systematic studies and research on the status of e-parliaments in developing countries. Finally, the study presents evidence from e-parliament initiatives that have been relatively successful and can serve as guide to other countries that are planning to introduce ICT to empower Parliaments and MPs.
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