Sopra Steria Asia’s white paper entitled “The Singapore Citizens’ view of Digital Government Services 2019” – commissioned by the Government Technology Agency of Singapore (GovTech Singapore) - examined Singapore citizens’ digital readiness, experiences and expectations for change, while comparing results from Sopra Steria Consulting – Digital Gov’2018 report for five European countries, namely France, Germany, Norway, Spain and the United Kingdom (UK). The survey of 1,000 Singapore citizens aged 18 to 64 was conducted in February 2019.

 
Using a similar set of questionnaires which were conducted by Sopra Steria Consulting for the five European countries in November 2018, 87% of the respondents believed that Singapore’s digital government services to be more advanced, compared to the five European countries (France 72%, Germany 48%, Norway 82%, Spain 64% and UK 65%). A majority (82%) also acknowledged Singapore’s digital tools and government services are increasingly easy to use. On the whole, digital government services for education and health are considered more digitally developed in Singapore.

The Digital Government Blueprint – Singapore’s five-year masterplan aimed at transforming the way the Government serves citizens and businesses – was launched in 2018, in support of building a Smart Nation.

User expectations have evolved in tandem with the Singapore government’s digital transformation. Digital development for health services is most prioritised by respondents. Respondents also wish to be involved in policy-making using collaborative and social media tools.

Data security remained a key concern in the move towards digital government services. 93% of Singapore respondents were concerned that their personal data might be accessed by someone else, and that the data will be used in ways that are counter to their personal interests (89%). However, citizens exhibited confidence in government policies and have faith in the capabilities of the public sector.  Seven (7) in 10 Singapore citizens believed in the government’s ability to keep citizen data safe, compared to 5 in 10 respondents in the European countries such as the France, Germany, Spain, and UK.

CEO of Sopra Steria Asia, Dr Vera Jin, said: “The White Paper reaffirmed the quality of Singapore’s government digital services in being citizen-centric and easy to use. Notwithstanding this, respondents were concerned about data security and this is probably one area the Singapore Government has to focus on. It is indeed timely that the Public Sector Data Security Review Committee has been convened to help strengthen the Singapore Public Sector’s data security processes and controls.  Be it helping residents access digital government services safely or strengthening existing data security practices, we expect the Singapore Government to continue to maintain its leading edge as a digital government.”

Read the White Paper