Use of mobile technologies for providing information and services is still a challenge for the Brazilian public sector, points out Cetic.br

Internet presence through websites and social networks was also investigated by the TIC Electronic Government 2015 Survey.

Only 21% of federal and state public agencies and 4% of Brazilian municipalities offered applications for mobile devices, reveals the second edition of the TIC Electronic Government Survey, launched this Thursday (28) by the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee (CGI.br) through the Regional Center for Studies on the Development of the Information Society (Cetic.br) of the Brazilian Network Information Center (NIC.br).

Conducted between July and October 2015, the TIC Electronic Government 2015 Survey investigates the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) in two profiles of organizations: federal and state public agencies across all branches of government (Executive, Legislative, Judiciary, and Prosecution) and also in municipalities (Municipal Executive). Among the analyzed aspects are infrastructure and IT management tools in public organizations, Internet presence through websites and social networks, availability to the society of public services, information, and online interaction mechanisms by the surveyed agencies, among other indicators.

In 2015, 996 municipalities and 620 federal and state public agencies were interviewed. The initial sample of municipalities was expanded compared to the first edition of the survey conducted in 2013, and the results were published by a larger number of population size bands of the municipalities and all regions of the country. “With this, we managed to deepen the understanding of the inequalities among municipalities in access and use of ICT, which are fundamental inputs for the implementation of public policies aimed at minimizing the disparities among Brazilian public organizations and improving their activities, especially in the dimensions of quality and efficiency of public service,” evaluates Alexandre Barbosa, manager of Cetic.br.

Use of mobile devices

Among the resources measured by the survey, the most cited by Brazilian municipalities was the existence of a website adapted for mobile devices (24%), followed by transactions and payments (8%), sending SMS to the citizen (7%), receiving SMS sent by the citizen (7%), applications created by companies or citizens from data made available by the municipality (6%), and applications created by the municipality (4%).

Half of the federal public agencies and 42% of the state ones made available websites adapted for mobile devices. Applications created by the public agency were mentioned by 33% of federal agencies and 20% of state ones, with the Judiciary (39%) and the Legislative (34%) being the branches that most cited this type of initiative. Other topics investigated by the survey were less cited: applications created by companies or citizens from data made available by the public agency (19% of federal and 11% of state) and sending SMS to the citizen (11% of federal and 10% of state).

The results indicate that the use of mobile technologies for offering services and information to society is still a challenge for the public sector, considering that almost half of Brazilians used the Internet through mobile phones in 2014 according to CGI.br data. “In Brazil, 81.5 million people use the Internet via mobile phones and 84% of them access the network daily through these devices. Despite this, public organizations in the country still do not offer many resources for mobile devices. The expansion of this type of initiative could facilitate access to information and public services by citizens,” considers Barbosa.

Websites and social networks

Regarding the Internet presence, the TIC Electronic Government 2015 Survey shows the disparities by region of the country. The proportion of municipalities with a website is practically universal in the South (99%), Midwest (98%), and Southeast (92%) regions, while the proportion is lower in the North (78%) and Northeast (76%) regions. On the other hand, the indicator measuring the presence of municipalities on social networks shows less discrepancy among the regions. The existence of a profile or own account on social networks was cited by 67% of municipalities in the North, 66% in the Northeast, South, and Midwest, and 64% in the Southeast.

Among government spheres, the Executive (91%) had the lowest percentage of Internet presence through a website. The survey shows that 92% of federal public agencies and 74% of state ones have their own profile or account on social networks. In the Judiciary, 99% of agencies have a website and 94% a profile on an online social network.  

Activities on social networks

Municipalities declared that they update or frequently post on the social networks where they have a profile or own account – 84% post every day or at least once a week. Activities identified in the survey include: posting news about the municipality (95%), promoting services or campaigns (90%), and responding to citizens' questions and comments (77%).

Regarding the updating of their profiles or accounts, 86% of federal and state public agencies post on their networks every day or at least once a week. About the main activities they perform on social networks are posting news about federal and state public agencies (93%), promoting services or campaigns (90%), and responding to citizens' questions and comments (82%).

To access the complete TIC Electronic Government 2015 Survey and review the first edition of the survey, visit https://cetic.br/pesquisa/governo-eletronico/.

About Cetic.br

The Regional Center for Studies on the Development of the Information Society, part of NIC.br, is responsible for producing indicators and statistics on the availability and use of the Internet in Brazil, disseminating periodic analyses and information about the network's development in the country. Cetic.br is a Regional Study Center, under the auspices of UNESCO. More information at https://www.cetic.br/.

About the Brazilian Network Information Center – NIC.br

The Brazilian Network Information Center – NIC.br (https://www.nic.br/) is a civil, non-profit entity that implements the decisions and projects of the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee. Permanent activities of NIC.br include coordinating the domain name registration – Registro.br (https://www.registro.br/), studying, responding to, and handling security incidents in Brazil – CERT.br (https://www.cert.br/), studying and researching network technologies and operations – Ceptro.br (https://www.ceptro.br/), producing indicators on information and communication technologies – Cetic.br (https://www.cetic.br/), promoting and fostering the evolution of the Web in Brazil – Ceweb.br (https://www.ceweb.br/) and hosting the W3C office in Brazil (https://www.w3c.br/).

About the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee – CGI.br

The Brazilian Internet Steering Committee, responsible for establishing strategic guidelines related to the use and development of the Internet in Brazil, coordinates and integrates all Internet service initiatives in the country, promoting technical quality, innovation, and dissemination of offered services. Based on the principles of multi-sectorism and transparency, CGI.br represents a democratic Internet governance model, praised internationally, where all sectors of society are equal participants in its decisions. One of its formulations is the 10 Principles for Internet Governance and Use (https://www.cgi.br/principios). More information is available at https://www.cgi.br/.

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