E-Government in the GCC Countries : Promises and Impediments

The digital revolution has impacted all aspects of our lives. For governments agencies ICT can improve inter-department business, as well as deepen relationships with businesses and citizens. It can do this by enhancing and streamlining service delivery, creating a more informed and active citizenry and making government more accountable, transparent and effective. This paper explores how the six countries in the Gulf Co-operation Council (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates) have responded to this opportunity and challenges, and how they will need to react to emerging technological trends if they are to maintain the momentum and potential afforded by e-Government. Given the pace of technology-related changes, this chapter encompasses academic literature, industry perspectives, and news reports to tell this emerging story