Microsoft Announces New E-Government Platform to Put Technology to Work for Governments and Citizens

Good development in the government space :

Microsoft Corp. today announced a new strategy that will make it easier for governments to interact with citizens, streamline processes and, as a result, save time and taxpayer dollars. At the Government Leaders Forum—Europe in Berlin, Microsoft unveiled the Citizen Service Platform (CSP), an approach to help governments of all sizes more responsively deliver services to citizens via the Internet.

From London to Stockholm, from Porto, Portugal, to Aalter, Belgium, governments of all sizes are communicating with citizens in a variety of new and innovative ways. Even with the diverse needs of these cities, many of their government agencies deliver a common set of services to citizens. A culmination of Microsoft’s partnerships, programs and projects conducted with governments over several years, the CSP has been developed to answer the needs seen across diverse government offices and help deliver the best of these services across different regions worldwide. Initial offerings include a suite of online services that will be available for customization and integration into existing government solutions for their citizens later this year.

Governments need to respond to the growing needs of their constituencies and modernize the way they conduct business and engage with their stakeholders, said Jean-Philippe Courtois, president of Microsoft International.

“Technology can help local and regional governments increase efficiency levels and offer modernized services, but many are ill-equipped to meet citizens’ needs due to a lack of funding, technical expertise or other resources,” Courtois said. “CSP arose from a series of projects among Microsoft, our partners, and local and regional governments. By incorporating past lessons and achievements, we will be able to provide these governments with technologies they can cost-effectively and easily deploy for the direct benefit of their citizens.”

Source: Microsoft Announces New E-Government Platform to Put Technology to Work for Governments and Citizens
Date Published: Tue, 22 Jan 2008 08:15:00 GMT