Examining the Evolution of E-Government Development of Nations Through Machine Learning Techniques

Abstract

Several initiatives have tried to measure the efforts nations have made towards developing e-government. The UN E-Government Development Index (EGDI) is the only global report that ranks and classifies the UN Member States into four categories based on a weighted average of normalized scores on online service, telecom infrastructure, and human capital. The authors argue that the EGDI fails in showing the efforts of nations over time and in informing nations and policymakers as to what and from whom to draw policy lessons. Using the UN EGDI data from 2008 to 2020, they profile the UN Member States and show the relevance of machine learning techniques in addressing these issues. They examine the resulting cluster profiles in terms of theoretical perspectives in the literature and derive policy insights from the different groupings of nations and their evolution over time. Finally, they discuss the policy implications of the proposed methodology and the insights obtained.