On the Phenomenon of Information Silo in the E－government Construction in China

Li Jing

(Business School Xi’an University of Arts and Sciences，Xi’an Shaanxi710065)

Ⅰ．Introduction

With the constant development of information technology，great achievements have been attained in e-government affairs，which has promoted the transformation of government function and increased the government working efficiency．However，information silo has hindered the further development of e-government affairs．Therefore，it has become an urgent task to solve the problem of information silo in e-government affairs．

Ⅱ．Concept of information silo

The principle of e-government affairs is to put all our heart and soul to work for the people，promote the reform of the mode of administrative activities and enhance administrative efficiency and develop democratic decision-mak-ing through the wide use of modern information technology，thus providing high quality，formal and transparent process and outcome of social management and service．E-government affairs are not only a technology，but a management plan and concept．Despite that large quantity of netizens in China constitute the foundation of the popularization and development of e-government affairs，information silo in the construction of e-government affairs has restricted its further development．

Ⅲ．Embodiment of information silo in the e-government in China

1．Repeated construction of information database and delay in information obtainment

Due to information silo，information database fails to achieve normal information communication．The repeated construction of information database has wasted large quantity of labor，material and money，while on the other hand，made it more difficult to acquire information and increased the cost of collecting useful data．Besides，the government will fail to make prompt and comprehensive decisions due to the delay in information obtainment，thus losing its advantage in global competition．

2．Low relevancy of information and inefficient coordination between the individual and the whole

Information can be useful in that it can be transmitted and shared．However，due to information silo，information communication cannot be realized between departments．Since every department has its own standards in system operation environment，information code rules，database system and operation flow，it not only influences the cooperation between government departments，but limit the information service offered to the public and the coordination and cooperation between individuals and the whole．

3．Similar system function and low functional level

The advanced stage of e-government affairs aims at improving administrative efficiency and providing high quality，standard and transparent management and service to society by formulating interactive coordinated management mechanism．However，many segregated heterogeneous e-government affairs have come into being due to information silo，thus many online affairs cannot be launched and completed on line．

Ⅳ．Causes of the phenomenon of information silo in the e-government in China

1．Lacking full understanding of e-government

The outdated concept and lacking full understanding of e-gov ernment affairs of the government departments and civil servants contribute to the partial construction of hardware infrastructure and the copy of management practice to the computer，trying to adapt e-government affairs to the traditional management mode．The government makes use of new technology by still sticking to traditional management means，ignoring the optimization，re-organization and adjustment of organization structure of government operation flow as well as the combination of internet technology and government process reengineering，eventually making the lonely islands in reality the virtual ones online．

2．Ignoring the important role of the strategic planning of e-government

Local governments neglect the strategic planning of e-government and believe that e-government affairs mean office automation．Local departments only make use of internet technology by solving the inner business requirements and ignore the coordination with other departments，which is bound to cause the failure of communication and sharing between departments and business application systems，thus leading to information silo and the new repeated construction and waste．

3．Imperfect technical support and guarantee system

E-government affairs concern the interests of a region，department or even a nation;however，the unsafe factors in internet and information technology constitute the potential risks of the construction and application of e-government affairs．Information silo will inevitably appear in this situation．

4．Lacking unified standard and specifications

Local governments construct e-government affairs separately，thus lacking unified technical standards in data exchange，operation flow and so on．Information cannot be properly shared between government departments and application systems．There are large differences in the technical standard specification of various departments，which has given rise to the serious incompatibility problems due to the lack of coordination and unified standards．

5．Lacking legal protection

China lags behind in the legislation of e-government affairs，and there is a lack of many definitions in this regard，such as e-payment and the unified and electronic management of public files．What’s more，the execution of existing laws and regulations has met certain resistance．Information silo is the inevitable outcome of the development of information age and the special period of domestic egovernment affairs．

Ⅴ．Measures of solving information silo in the e-government in China

1．Reinforcing the understanding of e-government and changing administrative idea

Only by changing the traditional administrative concept and establishing the idea of serving people wholeheartedly，can we bestow e-government affairs on meaning and value．Local governments and civil servants should have full understanding of e-government affairs and keep it in mind that e-government affairs are not the electronization of traditional government affairs，but the upgraded and reorganized government operation flow with the focus on users’needs，thus offering high quality，standard and transparent management and service for users，improving administrative efficiency and reducing the cost of service for social public．Besides，the advocating of e-government affairs among social public should be enhanced to promote further understanding and make sure that the mass could choose and enjoy the high efficient，convenient and fast service brought by e-government affairs，thus facilitating the further development of e-government affairs．

2．Attaching importance to the strategic planning of e-government

The planning of e-government affairs is the key to the success of the construction of e-government affairs for a nation，area，industry or department．Guided by unified planning and coordinated development，all levels of government and units should be mobilized to participate to reach the goal of unification，openness，interactivity and full sharing so as to collect and integrate the information resources，build perfect e-government affairs，provide seamless electronic service and promote the application development of e-government affairs to a higher level．

3．Constructing and perfecting technical support and guarantee system of egovernment

E-government affairs need the wide use of modern electronic information technology to realize its function，which requires the solid information technology supporting and guarantee system as the condition of its development．Therefore，the construction of e-government affairs should be in line with the operation flow of government and further establish and improve the technical supporting and guarantee system of e-government affairs by combining the characteristics of e-government affairs．Fixed-line phones，cell phones，cable televisions，satellite communications and data transmission should be used to ensure the necessary quantity，scale and proper coverage of e-government affairs and facilitate the combination of telecommunications，televisions and computers．

4．Accelerating the construction of the standard of e-government affairs

One key element in exerting the effect of modern science and technology in the construction and application of e-government affairs lies in establishing a unified standard of e-government affairs by means of unified standard so as to realize the interactivity and resources sharing between local government departments and business application systems．The standard of perfect e-governmentaffairs is the key to promote the construction of e-government affairs and the sound development of its application as well as effective measures to solve information silo．

5．Perfecting the law system

Developed countries or regions with perfect e-government affairs，such as the USA，Japan，Korea，Canada and Singapore，boast a perfect legislation system of informatization，including laws about the management of information resources and information system planning and establishment，such as The National Plan of the Protection of Information System of the US，ones about intellectual property rights and personal privacy protection，such as Electronic Communications Privacy Act of the US and ones about information disclosure，such as Freedom of Information Act of the UK．Despite that relevant laws have been established to promote the development of e-government affairs at home，including those concerning e-government affairs，such as Law of Electronic Signature，Administrative Permission Law and Law of Government Information Disclosure，the effect is not obvious．The publish of Law of E-government Affairs(experts’suggestion manuscripts)gives us hope of the publish of Law of E-government Affairs，which will enforce the standard work of e-government affairs by legal means，enhance the sharing and utilization of information resources and avoid repeated construction and the further spread of the phenomenon of information silo．

Ⅵ．Conclusion

The e-government affairs has been greatly developed during the decade，which has enhanced the supporting of domestic social and economic development and tremendously upgraded the ability to the government macroeconomic regulation，market supervision，social management and public service．The information silo must be reduced and totally eliminated to promote the long-term development of e-government affairs，propel the reform of the mode of administrative activities，enhance administrative efficiency and develop democratic decision-making．Only in this way can we effectively facilitate the benefits of e-government affairs．

Notes:

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