E-Government in Shanghai

Abstract

Chinese e-government was launched at the beginning of 1990s. It is necessary to develop e-government not only for the appeal of information technology and the government’s reform in the social and economic transition, but also for the demand of joining WTO (Wu & Zhang, 2003). Due to the developments in social organization, economy, and information infrastructure in China, e-government still remains at the initial stage (China E-government Research Center, 2002). Shanghai, as the largest and most flourishing city in China, is superior to other areas of China in hardware (information infrastructure, etc.) and software (e.g., “citizens’ concept”) (Qiao, 2004). Shanghai’s experiences may be the example for other provinces and cities, for (1) the e-government of Shanghai was named as a model by National Informatization Commission (NIC) in 2001; and (2) Shanghai leads the development of e-government in China. For example, Shanghai is the first local government to construct governmental Web portal, to provide online services and to make legal rules about open public information. This article describes the development of e-government in Shanghai, analyzes its predicament, and probes into its future trends.