South Korea leads the way in eGovernment while UK is 4th concludes the recently published United Nationas E-Government Survey 2010. UK lies in the 4th position and leads Europe in eGovernment services. Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Spain and France are the other European countries in the top ten along with Australia, Canada and the US.

Since the publication of the last survey in 2008, there has been significant progress in delivering online services to citizens. Most importantly, citizens seem to have benefited from eGovernment services.

At a time when countries are struggling with a crippling economic crisis and trust in politics and governance are at an all time low, eGovernment, while no substitute for good policy does provide a transparent framework for engagement with citizens.

The 2010 United Nations e-Government Survey: Leveraging e-government at a time of financial and economic crisis was completed in December 2009 and launched in early 2010. The report presented various roles for e-government in addressing the ongoing world financial and economic crisis.

The public trust that is gained through transparency can be further enhanced through the free sharing of government data based on open standards. The ability of e-government to handle speed and complexity can also underpin regulatory reform. While technology is no substitute for good policy, it may give citizens the power to question the actions of regulators and bring systemic issues to the fore. Similarly, e-government can add agility to public service delivery to help governments respond to an expanded set of demands even as revenues fall short.

The costs associated withtelecommunication infrastructure and human capital continue to impede e-government development. However, effective strategies and legal frameworks can compensate significantly, even in least developed countries.

Those who are able to harness the potential of expanded broadband access in developed regions and mobile cellular networks in developing countries to advance the UN development agenda have much to gain going forward.