ODA Projects
The Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) announced on August 24 that e-government official development assistance (ODA) projects are launched between this month and October in Myanmar, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Peru, Honduras, Rwanda, Uzbekistan, and Jordan. Grants and credit assistance cover 60 percent and 40 percent of the projects each, and the KOICA is responsible for 70 percent of the grants while the credit assistance is provided by the Export-Import Bank of Korea.
Specifically, the agency is planning to launch the IT-based Statistics Bureau Capability Enhancement Project in Myanmar in August and the e-Trade Single Window Project in Peru, Crime Prevention System Establishment Project in Honduras, Single Window-based Customs Administration Modernization Project in Uzbekistan, e-Procurement System Establishment Project in Jordan, and Tariff and National Tax Master Planning Project in Rwanda next month. These are followed in October by the e-Government Master Planning and Capability Enhancement Project in Bangladesh and the Emergency Security Response and National Certification System Establishment Project for e-Governance in Indonesia.
Those to be underway in Uzbekistan and Jordan are the two largest ones, costing 4.7 billion won (US$4.6 million) and 5.6 billion won (US$5.4 million) each. Uzbekistan was supported with equipment for customs administration in the past from aid providers in the U.N., U.S., E.U., Japan, and China. However, it is now in need of technology transfer and expertise sharing due to the limitations of the mere supply of such materials. Also, according to a feasibility study report, Jordan is well equipped with information and communications infrastructure essential for e-procurement system management and thus is expected to yield high project efficiency. The project is an important part of the Jordanian e-Government Establishment Project continuing until 2016.
The ODA projects can become seed money when the main e-government projects are launched in the future. Since the revision of the Software Industry Promotion Act last year, not big businesses but small and midsize enterprises have been in charge of such ODA projects for e-governance.
“Overseas projects, by nature, are more difficult than domestic ones, but no particular hurdle against the small firms has been found yet regarding the ODA projects before the launching of main projects,” said the KOICA, adding, “Still, we are planning to decide on major corporations’ participation prior to the launch, as the less-developed nations are looking forward to it.” The Costa Rican e-procurement system, which was set up by Samsung SDS in 2010, was given the Organization of American States (OAS) e-Government Award two years ago.