E-government and digital transformation in Libyan local authorities

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nt. J. Teaching and Case Studies, Vol. 12, No. 2, 2021 119
Copyright © 2021 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.
E-government and digital transformation in Libyan
local authorities
Martin Wynn*
School of Computing and Engineering,
University of Gloucestershire,
Park Campus, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire GL50 2RH, UK
Email: MWynn@glos.ac.uk
*Corresponding author
Ali Bakeer
Faculty of Information Technology,
Misurata University,
Misurata, Libya
Email: baker.ali@hotmail.com
Yousef Forti
School of Computing and Engineering,
University of Gloucestershire,
Park Campus, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire GL50 2RH, UK
Email: ybforti@gmail.com
Abstract: This article reports on e-government in local authorities in
Libya, and discusses the issues involved in digital transformation. The
study builds upon existing models and frameworks to establish a
technology-organisation-process (TOP) maturity model for assessing
e-government status in three case studies in Libya, which reveal major
problems in adopting e-government in Libya. The current technology
deployment remains basic, with inadequate information systems and networks,
out of date personal computers and office software, and unreliable access to the
internet. Organisational capabilities, skill levels, lack of funding, management
support and process inefficiencies are other factors hampering progress in the
adoption of e-government. A step-change to digital government that employs
emergent technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data, analytics and
cloud computing is currently out of reach. The TOP maturity model provides a
framework for assessing e-government readiness in a developing world
environment and gives a multi-dimensional perspective on local authority
capabilities.
Keywords: digital transformation; e-government; technology deployment;
TOP maturity model; qualitative case studies; organisational capabilities;
process efficiencies; Libyan local authorities; emergent technologies.
Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Wynn, M., Bakeer, A. and
Forti, Y. (2021) ‘E-government and digital transformation in Libyan local
authorities’, Int. J. Teaching and Case Studies, Vol. 12, No. 2, pp.119–139.

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Biographical notes: Martin Wynn is an Associate Professor in the School of
Computing and Engineering at the University of Gloucestershire. He obtained
his BA and MA degrees at the University of Durham, and PhD at Nottingham
Trent University. He worked in industry as an IT professional for 20 years at
Glaxo Pharmaceuticals and HP Bulmer, now part of the Heineken group. His
research interests include digital transformation, technology transfer, and
sustainability.
Ali Bakeer was awarded his PhD at the University of Gloucestershire in 2017
for his research into e-business in the university sector in Libya. He is on the
staff of the Faculty of Information Technology, Misurata University and
National Coordinator of the Erasmus Office in Libya. His research activities
encompass digital transformation in higher education and integrated systems
implementation in organisations.
Yousef Forti now works in the Facebook Global Marketing Solutions Team,
and is currently resident in Lisbon, Portugal. He received his MSc in Computer
Science from the University of Wolverhampton in 2008 and PhD in Digital
Government from the University of Gloucestershire in 2020. He has over five
years of experience in digital government and seven years of experience in
software development. His research activities include digital government,
e-transition and digital marketing.
This paper is a revised and expanded version of a paper entitled ‘A new model
for e-government in local level administrations in Libya’ presented at
The Seventeenth European Conference on Digital Government, Lisbon,
Portugal, 12–13 June 2017.
1 Introduction
The deployment of new digital technologies, allied to the availability of the internet, has
had a profound impact on the global economy, and in the context of Africa, national
governments are assessing the potential of digital transformation to drive economic
growth and reduce inequalities (DIRCO, 2019). One area where digital technologies may
be of benefit is e-government, which is generally seen as the use by government agencies
of information technologies (ITs) (such as wide area networks, the internet, and mobile
computing) that have the ability to transform relations with citizens, businesses, and other
arms of government. The concept of digital government (as opposed to e-government)
has come to the fore, which the World Bank (2020) see as “a fundamental shift in the
way governments around the world are embracing their mission.” This involves
governments in “leveraging the power of information technologies in transformative
ways” (para. 1). The World Bank (2020) sees this as contributing to its “twin goals of
ending extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity” (para. 16).
In 2010, the Libyan Government mandated the Ministry of Communications and
Informatics to develop an e-government strategy to modernise government services. This
initiative, known as ‘e-Libya’, aimed at putting IT at the centre of government operations
to enhance the services provided to all residents and businesses. Although the e-Libya
initiative was viewed as a major attempt to convert to an information-based society, the
project was suspended in 2015 due to the unstable political situation. Late in 2017, the
government started to resurrect the initiative by starting negotiations with

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PricewaterhouseCoopers to commence and provide a comprehensive e-government plan,
but progress has been hampered by the continuing civil war and social unrest. In 2020,
Libya was ranked 162 out of 193 in the world in the United Nations latest bi-annual
world ranking of e-government services (United Nations, 2020), behind, in the Arab
world, the UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Oman (Zaptia, 2020).
Through their policies, programs and services, local governments can have a
significant impact on citizens, businesses, and other stakeholders on a daily basis. Local
governments render services in defined geographical areas, where central government
cannot attend in detail to all the requirements of society at local level. In Libya, local
authorities were governed through ‘popular committees’ during the rule of Muammar
Gaddafi from 1977 to 2011, but in 2012, the Interim National Transitional Council
approved a new law (law number 59) which set out the role and duties of local
authorities. It re-defined the powers given to governors and mayors, and determined the
amount of financial resources allocated to provinces and municipalities. The local
authorities, whose members are now directly elected, fall under the direction of the
Ministry of Local Authorities.
This article examines e-governance in three local authorities in Libya, through the
technology-organisation-process (TOP) maturity model, which was piloted in Libya in
2017 (Forti and Wynn, 2017), and has since been refined and applied to two further local
authorities. It addresses two research questions (RQs): first, what is the status of
e-government at local authority level in Libya? Second, what are the key issues involved
in transitioning from e-government to digital government in Libyan local authorities?
Following this introduction, relevant literature and models are reviewed in Section 2, and
the research methodology is discussed in Section 3. The TOP model is then set out in
Section 4, and Section 5 summarises the main findings from the three case studies.
Section 6 discusses these findings in the context of the two RQs. Finally, Section 7 draws
some conclusions regarding the contribution of the research project and future work.
2 Related literature
E-government can be seen as a response to the need to improve local, regional and
national government operations (Jadi and Jie, 2014). In the 1990s, the emergence of
network-based IT represented a turning point for government agencies, which now had
the opportunity to exploit IT to achieve their goals. The term ‘e-government’ was coined
and since then it has been re-defined and developed as technologies have advanced.
Heeks (2006) saw e-government as a combination of the key characteristics of a
technological department and public administration, encompassing and enhancing
customer service (the front office), and organisational structure (the back office). More
generally, e-government was seen by Otubu (2009) as the process whereby the use of
information and communication technology (ICT) is employed by the government in the
delivery of services to members of the public, and in the internal running and linkages
among different governmental agencies. Public sector organisations in both developed
and developing countries have realised the importance of making their services more
effective, efficient and accessible by revolutionising governments’ interactions with their
stakeholders (Rammea and Grobbelaar, 2017). E-government has become an explicit
component of public sector reform, as an instrument to increase efficiency, strengthen
competitiveness and speed institutional modernisation.

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In the last decade, there has been increasing pressure and demand from citizens to
provide government services online, as technologies have matured and the risks of
their adopting have declined. There is also international pressure to participate in the
‘e-Economy’ and be part of the global economic network (Hatsu and Ngassam, 2017).
This pressure has encouraged policy and decision makers, including those in poor and
less developed countries, to facilitate the move to e-government. Unfortunately, this
transformation has often been associated with complexity and difficulty due to the
multiple dimensions and perspectives involved (Veenstra et al., 2011). It is evident that
effective e-government must deal with a range of political, economic, cultural,
technological and organisational factors. The complexity of e-government as a
socio-technical system (Hafizi et al., 2014) impedes change in many developing
countries, such as Libya. It is clear that e-government offers great opportunities to
enhance efficiency and increase productivity, but it also raises many challenges.
This has been brought into even sharper focus with the wide range of new ‘disruptive’
technologies that are now available. This process of ‘digitalisation’ is central to the
concept of digital government, which goes beyond what has hitherto been termed
e-government. The move to digital government has a clearer technology focus, and can
be seen as ‘a synergistic process’, in which “the organizations that are most successful
are the ones that ‘ride the wave’ of technology, and use a well-defined strategy that
receives buy-in from the end users and shows clear, and ongoing, benefits” [DX, (2020),
para. 13]. The World Bank (2020, para. 1) see the possibilities of the deployment of these
new technologies as ranging “from setting measurable administrative goals to improving
public service delivery, from making data-driven decisions to enacting evidence-based
policies, from ensuring greater accountability and transparency within government to
building greater public trust.” The World Bank (2020, paras. 16/17) claim, “a well-suited
digital infrastructure can improve the functions of governments at various scales –
national, regional and local. Data will be central in enabling digital development, for
instance making use of contextual data indicators can allow governments to gain a more
acute understanding of local issues and accurately gauge public concerns.”
Several frameworks and models have been devised to assess and analyse technology
adoption in government. The adoption of e-government, however, is more than a
technology issue, as it is influenced by many other factors (Ebrahim et al., 2004).
Organisational structure and human capabilities are important factors which are related to
the nature of the government in a particular country, and its overall role and
responsibilities in society (Gupta et al., 2008). In the context of Libya, Busoud and
Živković (2016) suggest a wide range of factors that impact on e-government (Figure 1).
A number of maturity models have been developed, some of which try to assess this
broader range of dimensions in e-government. For example, Valdés et al. (2011)
structured their model around three main elements: leverage domains, key domain areas
and critical variables, which together “enable public agencies to consider the necessary
aspects to join e-Government initiatives.” Four leverage domains were defined
(‘e-government strategy’, ‘IT governance’, ‘process management’, and ‘organisation and
people’), with 17 key domain areas, and 55 critical variables.

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Figure 1 Infrastructure needed for quality e-government in Libya (see online version for colours)
Source: Busoud and Živković (2016, p.514)
The United Nations (2014) model “aims to give a performance rating of national
governments.” However, many existing e-government maturity models, including the
United Nations model, often assess the level of e-government from the outside, by
observing the availability of front-end services, and pay scant attention to back-office
systems and processes, which provide the foundation for e-government as a whole. This
may be a logical focus when taking the citizens’ point of view, or from the view of other
stakeholders who are not directly involved in improving the overall provision of
e-government; but it provides only a partial view of e-government systems and processes.
Another shortcoming of existing models is that they do not assess governmental
organisations at individual process level. Other researchers and international institutions
(Altameem, 2007; Warkentin et al., 2002) have developed models to assess e-government
infrastructure. These suggest that implementing a robust e-government infrastructure
needs a staged approach, where an authority transitions from an immature to a mature
stage, at which point electronic access to fully integrated public services is made
available.
In addition to the technology factor, some argue that e-government needs to focus on
the different attitudes and values evident in different local government environments,
allied to contrasting social, organisational and cultural factors (Kim, 2007). Anderson and
Henriksen (2006) further suggest that e-government stages and models have been used to

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measure the level of e-services in many countries, but that they have not taken much
cognisance of key operational metrics, notably in back office processing capabilities,
particularly in developing countries. In addition, Bwalya and Healy (2010) argue that, to
be effective, an effective e-government model must be based on a comprehensive
understanding of the real context of the state or organisation in which the initiative is
taking place.
This line of thinking is reiterated in some of the literature on digital transformation.
Bock (2019), notes that simply digitising services through technology alone does not
yield the transformation of an organisation, but rather a balanced interplay of technology,
people, channels, and a clear strategy is usually required in what he terms a “digital
ecosystem” (para. 7). Digital transformation is thus viewed as the deployment of a wide
range of technologies and systems to significantly improve business processes and
operations.
Similarly, the DX (2020, para. 4) consultancy note that the three areas that
organisations “must address in order to best measure the state of their Digital
Transformation” are strategy, culture and technology. Nevertheless, other researchers
[Obwegeser et al., (2020), para. 3] conclude, “the reality for many organizations is that
digital transformation consists of an ungainly confederacy of digital initiatives revolving
around new technologies, a few Skunk Works projects, and random acts of digital
enablement.”
Recent research on e-government in Libya has included studies of security aspects
(Murah and Ali, 2018), future plans (Busoud and Živković, 2016), as well as the initial
development of the TOP maturity model (Forti and Wynn, 2017; Forti, 2020). However,
there has been no research that attempts to address the current situation regarding
e-government in Libya in the context of digital transformation.
3 Research methodology
This research is based on a qualitative, inductive, approach using questionnaires and
semi-structured interviews as the main method of data collection in three case studies of
Libyan local authorities. The philosophical position is based on the ontology of
subjectivism, while the epistemological position is interpretivism. Bryman and Bell
(2011) have contested that a case study approach can be productively combined with an
inductive qualitative research method, allowing detailed and intensive research activity.
The case study is also appropriate for a combination of qualitative methods (Saunders
et al., 2009). The approach aims to provide opportunity to gain a rich understanding of
the research context, which enables answers to the RQs to be formulated (Yin, 2013).
This is qualitative, inductive, exploratory research based on detailed case studies.
Questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were used for data collection and
18 senior and middle-level government employees and officials from the three local
authorities were interviewed. Semi-structured interviews offer flexibility, as they help to
collect more detailed information from the respondents by allowing the researchers to
create a rapport with the interviewees, immerse themselves in their day-to-day reality and
interpret their perceptions and assumptions. Yin (2013) suggests that the utilisation of
multiple sources of evidence is one way of increasing the construct validity of case
studies. A structured questionnaire was filled in by five respondents in each of the three
cases studied, and follow-up interviews were conducted with the questionnaire

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respondents. A further three personnel from the Ministry of Local Authorities, the central
government authority responsible for overall direction of the country’s local authorities,
were also held. Interview transcripts, documentary evidence and observation have been
combined in order to obtain a broader view. The use of multiple sources of evidence
(especially tape-recorded interviews) allowed the researchers to establish a range of
technical and behavioural issues.
The three case study local authorities are:
• Misurata Local Authority (MLA): Misurata is the third largest city in Libya. It has a
population of over 500,000 people and is located on the Mediterranean Sea,
200 kilometres east of Tripoli, Libya’s capital city. The authority is responsible for
managing the city’s services and facilities, its social and administrative affairs, and
organising procedures for licenses and permits for business and individuals. The
authority issues licenses of local business development and activities encompassing
hotels, markets and factories. The interviewees in this case study were the deputy
manager of human resources, the statistics and information officer in the finance
function, the information officer in the community services (CS) office and two IT
staff.
• Sabratha Local Authority (SLA): Sabratha is located in the north west of Libya,
70 kilometres east of Tripoli, on a point of rocky land projecting into the
Mediterranean Sea. The city was the westernmost of the ancient ‘three cities’ of
Roman Tripolis, and the population numbers over 150,000. The authority provides a
range of different services to its stakeholders (citizens, businesses, governments),
including water supply, sewage collection and disposal, refuse removal, electricity
and gas supply, health services, roads and storm water drainage, street lighting, parks
and recreation, taxation, licenses, and schools. The interviewees from the authority
included the director of procurement, deputy manager of human resources, director
of financial management (FM) and accounting, deputy manager of statistics and IT
and the deputy manager of legal affairs.
• Rujban Local Authority (RLA): Rujban is a small city, which lies on the Nafusa
mountain chain more than 150 kilometres south-west of Tripoli, and is inhabited by
18,000 people. The authority has less financial and administrative powers than the
other two authorities do, but their responsibilities include planning and administering
a number of core services for its stakeholders. Staff are located in a variety of
buildings across Rujban City. Interviewees in this case study included the deputy
manager of community and services, director of procurement, the director of FM and
accounting, the statistics and IT officer and an IT software and support analyst.
4 Development of the TOP model
The TOP model was developed to assess the e-government readiness of local authorities
at individual process level and builds on themes and concepts evident in existing
literature (Chen et al., 2006; Ebrahim and Irani, 2005; United Nations, 2014). The model
recognises three dimensions of change – technology deployment, organisational
capabilities and process efficiency, with each dimension comprising a number of factors
and sub-factors that are assessed at individual process level within the local authority

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(Figure 2). This allows the identification of stages of maturity as regards e-government
adoption, providing an evaluation of what is needed to progress from one stage to the
next in the model. A brief overview of each dimension is given in Figure 2.
Figure 2 The main dimensions and factors of the TOP model
4.1 Technology deployment dimension
This dimension focuses on technologies that should be in place before e-government
services can be offered reliably and effectively to the public. There are four technology
factors, which support the operation and integration of information systems and
applications in processes across the organisation, and provide the necessary standards and
protocols regarding network and communication infrastructure. ICT infrastructure is an
essential part of e-government implementation and diffusion. It enables government
agencies to cooperate, interact and share work, facilitating daily tasks and using the
technology to save employees’ time and effort (Alshehri and Drew, 2010). A number of
different models identify network communications, hardware and software applications,
security and privacy, and IT standards as critical factors that underpin the effective
development of e-government capabilities.
4.2 Organisational capability dimension
As Fountain (2001) noted, “information technology and organisational/institutional
arrangements are connected reciprocally. Both function in this framework as dependent
and independent factors,” and it is generally recognised that a number of organisational
issues relating to human activity, organisational culture and change management are
critical in successful technology adoption. Several studies (Al-Shehry, 2008; Schein,
2010) show that a number of e-government initiatives, in different types of public
agencies, fail or do not achieve their goals. Reasons for such failure can be linked to a
variety of factors, including a lack of executive and top managers’ commitment and
support, employees’ resistance to change, lack of skills and training programs, lack of

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awareness and conceptual understanding, old and inflexible management systems, and a
lack of funds and absence of an e-government strategy. According to the United Nations
(2014), the percentage of illiteracy in developing countries is often high and the
percentage of ICT illiteracy is even worse. Four main factors relating to organisational
change have been identified (Figure 2).
Table 1 The 11 factors used to assess e-government maturity
No. Factors Description
1 Software and
hardware
Evidence of software and hardware equipment that is providing
professional and powerful computing. This encompasses desktop
computers and servers that run and host applications and provide
access to government data and services which support and integrate
the operations of information systems and applications across local
administrations.
2 Network
communications
A group of computer systems and other computing hardware devices
that are linked together through communication channels to facilitate
communication and resource sharing among a wide range of users
within or outside the organisation. This includes access to the
internet.
3 Security and
privacy
A set of strategies and operational procedures for managing the
processes, tools and policies necessary to prevent, detect, document
and counter threats to digital and non-digital information.
4 IT standards Established standards and controls that allow the local authority to
run application programs from different vendors, and to interact with
other computers across local or wide-area networks regardless of their
physical architecture and operating systems.
5 Staffing and
skills
The ability of local authority staff – and the organisation as a whole –
to learn, develop and adapt to change.
6 Organisational
culture
The type of culture set by senior management in the local authority,
and in particular the attitude towards acceptance of new technology,
notably that relating to e-government initiatives.
7 Strategy and
vision
Evidence of a clear strategy and vision that provides a roadmap for a
transition to e-government objectives. Constitutes an overall frame of
reference for all decisions and plans in all departments within the
local authority.
8 Senior
management
The leadership, support and commitment from management,
particularly as regards e-government plans and investment.
9 Documentation
and
standardisation
Evidence of clear documentation of processes and procedures, and
guidance for computer and systems operation, which provide a
standard way of operating. Must reflect changes brought in by new
circumstances and technologies.
10 Adaptability The ability of the processes to respond and adapt to changed
circumstances within an e-government context.
11 Accessibility A measure of how easy it is (or otherwise) for key stakeholders to
access the process (via website, phone, personal, kiosk, etc.).
4.3 Process efficiency dimension
Process management is a systematic approach to making an organisation’s workflow
more effective, more efficient and more capable of adapting to an ever-changing

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environment. The goal of process management is to reduce human error and
miscommunication and focus stakeholders on the requirements of their roles. Effective
process management combines electronic document management services with
workflow technology to automate key business processes. The continuous refinement and
improvement of processes build layers of efficiency and agility within the organisation,
resulting in a more productive and more profitable infrastructure. Since the 1990s, private
organisations have achieved major business process change and recorded many
associated successful initiatives in the information system arena. Veenstra et al. (2011)
argue that change programs in e-government are likely to be inadequate without business
process efficiency gains. Three main factors associated with the process dimension are
shown in Figure 2.
Overall, 11 primary factors were identified for the model (Table 1), with each factor
having a number of sub-factors. These were assessed in each of the three authorities, with
each of the three dimensions being assessed separately at process level. The stages in the
resultant five-stage model are denoted as follows: chaotic, basic, controlled, standardised
and optimised. These notations are derived from the maturity model developed by the
SEI (2006) to assess the maturity of software. After reviewing other maturity model stage
definitions, these appear to be a good initial fit for the model and the overall research
objectives. As an example, a brief summary of the five stages in the technology
dimension, applied to individual process areas in the local authorities, is given in Table 2.
Table 2 Qualitative model definitions of the technology deployment dimension
Capability Definitions
Chaotic The process is non-technical and completely relies on manual work
Basic There is only very basic ICT Infrastructure, and the process is still largely based
on manual operations. Some personal computers are used, running desktop
software (typically MS Office), and some printers are available. There may be
some use of information systems to support individual tasks, but data exchange
is primarily paper or telephone-based. There is no IT support.
Controlled There is limited networking between departmental computers and printers. Data
exchange happens only within the department, based on the local area network.
There is access to the internet, but it is slow and unreliable. Some software
packages or bespoke information systems are used, but there is vulnerability in
security and privacy, and there is only limited IT support provided.
Standardised The technology infrastructure enabling the information to be exchanged within
and between departments in the local government is in place. Information
systems are used to support departmental activities. Software security is
installed, polices are in place and there is adequate IT support.
Optimised The infrastructure enabling integration between systems in different departments
allows data to be exchanged between departments and across local authorities,
enabling local government to deliver technology-supported services to its
employees and citizens. IT standards are in place across local authorities. There
is professional IT support.
5 Findings
This section presents an overview of the findings from the three case studies at process
level. In an initial stage of research the main processes in each of the local authorities

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were identified – these were broadly similar but there were slight variances between the
local authorities, reflecting different authority responsibilities. Process definitions are
based on the explanations of the people involved in performing the process. In all, across
the three authorities, there are 15 processes, each with findings relating to the three
dimensions in the TOP model. Here an overview is given of the findings in each authority
with some illustrative examples at process level.
5.1 The MLA
Six main processes were identified in MLA (Figure 3). Overall, the TOP analysis
presents a mixed picture, with some of the internal processes (FM and Administration)
being reasonably advanced in terms of organisational capabilities, and others (properties
management and ICT management) using technology effectively to support their job
functions, even if it is out of date, and not able to support modern day
e-government services. A major issue is the lack of process documentation and
consistency across all process areas.
Figure 3 MLA: TOP maturity model (see online version for colours)
In the FM process, technology deployment is basic with transaction processing and
reporting being undertaken in accounts management and payroll areas on standalone
personal computers. The staffing and skill levels are relatively advanced and the
performance is adequate, with training being provided by senior management on a
regular basis. The staff computing skill levels range from basic to advanced and staff also
portray good interpersonal and communication skills, a teamwork mentality and good

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adaptability, which can reduce resistance to change when new technologies are
introduced. The overall process is based on a hierarchical structure, which is centralised,
with the most important decisions being taken by senior management and officials in the
local authority’s main office. E-government vision and strategies are not detailed and
lack a strategic framework. There is some evidence of process documentation via MS
Word and MS Excel for accounts management, payroll and debt advisory functions.
These documents act as authorised communication guides that most of the employees and
managers can reference to see how a process or activity should be performed.
The CS department is the largest in the authority, providing water, electricity,
waste disposal, housing and taxation services which directly affect the stakeholders,
particularly its citizens and businesses. However, computers and software packages
are out of date, and staff skills and capabilities are inadequate, hampering work
performance levels. Few employees have even basic computer skills, and interpersonal
skills, such as communication skills, teamwork, problem solving, planning and
organising or self-management are similarly limited. There was evidence of resistance to
change to embrace new technology, and a general lack of commitment to work. Many
staff will refuse to adopt e-government change because of fear of losing their positions.
There is a lack of task documentation, with inefficient process performance and increased
probability of mistakes.
Within the project management process, both hardware and software are available to
acceptable levels, but technologies are outdated and inadequate to adopt e-government
systems. It was evident from the interviews that the employees possessed reasonable
employability skill, but functional skills were too low and there was a lack of available
training courses. Organisational culture was reasonable among the employees; this was
evidenced by the fact that employees were committed to their work and tasks were
mostly completed within set timescales. However, there was lack of support and funding
from senior management for required changes and technology upgrades. Awareness of e-
government benefits among the management and employees was low. Processes were
unstructured and undocumented, resulting in inconsistencies, with multiple employees
doing the same task in different ways. The overall approach to management was
disorganised.
5.2 The SLA
There were five process areas identified for analysis at SLA (Figure 4). Basic technology,
at least, was in evidence in all process areas, with the exception of legal affairs
management (LAM), where only two inadequate computers were in operation, built
around the old and relatively slow Celeron processor, which were thus not used for
day-to-day activities, and which were not linked to the network. Process efficiency and
organisational capabilities were low, ranging from chaotic to basic in all processes.
The FM process has a more robust technology platform than most other areas,
including computers with i7 processor and laser printers. However, the software was
outdated, with Windows XP and MS Office 2000 still used. A client/server network with
15 computers was connected to the server, but the internet was often disconnected and
unreliable. The FM process is supported by an accounts management and payroll system,
used by eight personnel for preparing invoices for citizens and businesses and recording
of its employees’ earnings. The system was developed by third party programmers based
on the Borland Delphi platform. There is local network connectivity and centralised

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control, which helps in administering the system and ensures that all files are stored at the
same place, allowing effective system backups. However, although basic security
software was installed on the server, it has limited security features and there was also a
lack of awareness of security risks among employees, and security policies were not
applied to reduce security breaches. In addition, there was no disaster recovery plan in
place. MS Word and Excel are used to produce reports and online services are used
occasionally to display and update information on the local authority’s website. The
staffing and skill levels are basic and the performance is adequate, due to the training
provided by senior management on a regular basis. The management is based on a
hierarchical structure, which is centralised with the most important decisions being taken
by senior management and the local authority’s main office (the mayor’s office).
E-government vision and strategies are not detailed and are lacking a strategic
framework.
Figure 4 SLA: TOP maturity model (see online version for colours)
The procurement management (PM) process is responsible for the purchase and storage
of all supplies, services and construction in support of the local authority’s activities.
In-house systems, which were built by the authority’s IT department, are used, based on
Visual Studio and an SQL database (Table 3). A purchasing system, which was first
introduced into the department in 2010, is used to record and store the daily purchasing
activities of the local authority and produce reports – monthly, quarterly, bi-annually, and
annually. Warehousing is supported by the second in-house system, which was developed
and introduced in 2008, and is used to control the movement, storage and accounting of
materials. The systems run on six different computers, there is a peer-to-peer local
network in the department, and the data is gathered from other processes manually and
prepared by using office software packages (MS Word or Excel spreadsheets) before
entry into the in-house system. There is a traditional hierarchical management structure in

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place, which no longer produces optimum efficiencies in the new information era. Skill
levels amongst staff appear to be generally adequate; the department used to provide
staff training and courses but stopped five years ago due to lack of funds. There is
not a general resistance to change among the staff to use technology; many of the
employees have adequate knowledge of basic computer skills, despite the fact that
manual/handwritten work is still in evidence. There was a lack of documentation for
tasks, which always increases the probability of mistakes, lowers productivity levels and
does not assure continuity of process and quality when employees leave or are on
vacation.
Table 3 Technology deployment in the PM process at SLA
Desk tops Lap tops Multi-function
devices Networks Other devices
24 5 4 all in one
printers
LAN network 1 photocopier
1 fax machine
Software Description and characteristics Weaknesses
Purchasing
system
The purchasing system manages the
entire acquisition process, from
requisition, to purchase order, to
product receipt, to payment. It uses
an SQL database and visual basic
platform
The system is isolated and works
only on six computers. Manual work
is required before data entry into the
system. This in-house developed
system runs under the Windows
form application, which does not
support .Net framework.
Warehouse
management
system
(WMS)
Stores integrated, often historical,
and aggregated information
extracted from multiple
departments. It is used to avoid
product overstocking and outages,
and for organising inventory data
that before was generally stored in
hard-copy form or in spreadsheets.
It uses an SQL database and visual
studio platform.
The system is isolated and works
only on four computers, and manual
work is needed before data entry into
the system. This in-house developed
system runs under the Windows
form application, which does not
support .Net framework.
Website Simple information dissemination One-way communication. The
website makes information available,
but there is no capability for the user
to search, enter data or access
authority systems or databases.
5.3 The RLA
Four main processes were identified and investigated at RLA (Figure 5). Overall, the
authority is behind the other two cases, with process efficiencies and organisational
capabilities remaining at the chaotic stage in three of the four process areas. Only in FM
were organisational capabilities more advanced. Technology deployment is standard
across the organisation, but remains at the basic level.
The community services management (CSM) process employs 21 staff, and utilises an
in-house system to record civilian details. PCs and software were available, but generally
out of date using old non-supported versions. There was a peer-to-peer network, with one
printer connected to it, but the internet was normally unavailable. Basic security software

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was installed on the computers, but no security polices applied, nor were disaster
recovery procedures in place. The Windows operating system was installed on PCs, but
out of date (Windows 2000), and incompatible databases were employed in different
processes across the authority. Skills and capabilities were inadequate, with no training
courses provided or planned. There was lack of commitment to work and resistance to
change among the employees and favouritism was an issue as many employees
complained that they had been ignored and never been promoted. There was a perceived
lack of senior management support, poor funding and no reward system; awareness of the
potential benefits of e-government was minimal and there was no detailed future plan to
adopt e-government. In terms of process efficiency, there was no documentation, and a
consequent lack of standardisation in task execution.
Figure 5 RLA: TOP maturity model (see online version for colours)
In the human resource management (HRM) process, an in-house developed system
provides data entry, tracking, and reporting functions for the personnel, payroll, and some
accounting functions within the authority. However, the use of paper-based forms
remains for recording data before entry into the system using MS Word and MS Excel. A
client/server network facilitates sharing of access to data located on the server and
printers were connected to the network. However, there was no network access to other
areas of the authority and the internet was unreliable. There was also outdated security
software installed with basic features, and no security policies were applied, nor was
there a disaster recovery plan in place. In terms of organisational capabilities, functional
and employability skills were weak, and no training courses were planned to improve
employees’ skills and quality of work. There was also resistance to change when new
technologies were introduced, and there were no plans to adopt IT projects encompassing
a move to e-government. The HRM process was generally lacking organisation, with
many activities unstructured and undocumented, with a resultant lack of standardisation
and consistency.

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6 Discussion
The findings are discussed in this section in the context of the two RQs set out in
Section 1.
RQ1 What is the status of e-government at local authority level in Libya?
Technology deployment within the three local authorities was at the basic or intermediate
level in most process areas. Some business information systems were used, notably in the
finance and procurement processes, often being bespoke systems developed in-house or
by third parties. Personal computers or laptops were used by some employees on which
MS Word and MS Excel were run. Some computers were networked to departmental
servers, but no authority had an effective cross-authority network, and databases were
often incompatible, making data exchange problematic. Computers were generally old
models and desktop software and operating systems were old versions and/or out of
maintenance. Security software was in evidence, but security and backup procedures
were weak or non-existent. Access to the internet was not always available, and although
all three authorities had a web portal, they provide only very basic information.
Organisational capabilities varied from process to process and between the three
authorities, but generally lagged behind the level of technology deployment. Staff
capabilities were limited within most process areas, employees showing inadequate
functional and employability skills, resistance to change and weak awareness of the
benefits of e-government. Funding was also an issue, and there were no detailed or
planned strategies at process or authority level to adopt e-government. Employees also
feared that e-government might lead to organisational change that may result in
redesigning or losing job roles. Favouritism and a culture where information is
considered an asset not to be shared were other problems evident in the three authorities.
There was no evidence of a reward system based on merit.
Processes were chaotic or at a basic level in all three authorities and this hampered
the effective use of the available technology. Documentation was poor or non-existent,
hampering standardisation and access from other parts of the authority, or from citizens
and other outside agencies. Process improvement in such circumstances is difficult. There
was a general lack of strategy to improve processes and organisational capabilities. The
process efficiency dimension was generally weaker than the technology and/or the
organisational dimension in all three authorities.
RQ2 What are the key issues involved in transitioning from e-government to digital
government?
The case studies provide the context for digital transformation in local authorities in
Libya. Henriette et al. (2015, p.431) suggest this involves a profound transformation of
“organisational activities, processes, competencies and models to fully leverage the
changes and opportunities of a mix of digital technologies.” Clearly, with local
authorities struggling to embrace the potential of e-government, a further step-change to
deploy and benefit from the new technologies is a major challenge. The TOP model
analysis indicated major shortcomings in the three authorities’ capabilities to adopt
e-government technologies, practices and processes, which can be seen as a strategic gap
between the current reality and what is possible (Figure 6). In sections 6.1-6.3 below, we
suggest what needs to be done to instigate this change and move further towards digital
government.

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Figure 6 Local authority e-government strategic gap (see online version for colours)
6.1 Technology deployment
Set technology standards and minimum requirements for technology infrastructure.
The Ministry of Local Authorities should provide minimum specifications for
commonly used IT equipment, as a mens of ensuring standardisation and the necessary
upgrade of equipment used across its local authorities. This should include personal
computers, servers, and desktop software.
For e-government to be successfully implemented in local authorities, it is imperative
that communication infrastructure be developed across the country. A coherent strategy is
needed for ensuring connectivity within and between the country’s local authorities.
Many still suffer from low penetration of the fixed line telecom infrastructure and low
teledensity all over the regions, which in turn impacts on the availability of the internet.
There is the opportunity for the Ministry of Local Authorities to establish common
information systems for the main functions in local authorities. Processes are similar
across all authorities. Finance and HR functions, for example, could be processed using
common systems; and in time, these could be made available online via the internet.
Standards and technologies for website development, to provide a standard web interface
for citizens and other stakeholders, should be agreed and implemented.
Local authorities hold large amounts of sensitive database. Appropriate security
measures and technologies need to be introduced. These include public key infrastructure
(a set of rules, policies, and procedures needed to create, manage, distribute, use, store,
and revoke digital certificates and manage public key encryption), reliable firewalls, and
data encryption techniques. The use of local authority data centres with disaster recovery
procedures and technologies should be assessed.
Partnerships with local and national technology and service companies should be
explored, to participate in the implementation of a suitably funded national digital
government strategy. The private sector can be a source of cost-sharing, technology
provision and project management expertise.

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6.2 Organisational capability
Local authorities should recognise the importance of functional and employability skills
and provide appropriate training. In addition to technical skills, IT staff needs training on
the evaluation, procurement and management of technologies.
Lack of awareness of the basic functioning and potential benefits of e-government
can be addressed through training, workshops, conferences and seminars. This should
encompass exposure to successful e-government strategies and projects in other
countries, which share similar cultural backgrounds, such as Bahrain and the Emirates.
Attitude and adaptability to change is an important prerequisite for e-government
implementation. Change management skills are required to guide the process of
transformation. The use of consultants to provide employees with confidence about the
outcomes of a transition to of e-government should be considered.
Local authority vision, goals, objectives, priorities and strategies need to be
re-examined and aligned with a re-formulated national e-Libya initiative. A coordinated
roadmap for transition to digital government at national and local level is required.
Seniors management in the local authorities need to provide leadership and build political
support within other government bodies, making the case for change and the required
resources, publicly taking ownership of the project on a sustained basis.
6.3 Process efficiency
Task and process documentation can reduce the current operational inconsistencies and
process errors. Software tools are available to support this. Process documentation is part
of collective organisational knowledge, and can be shared within and between authorities.
This would provide a way of standardising processes and eliminating the current chaotic
and ineffective environment.
As new technologies are introduced, the options for process improvement should be
examined. Effective process management can help organisations scale up and improve
efficiency for new and existing employees. The interface between the local authority and
its citizens also requires focus. External access to authority processes is currently via the
phone or personal contact for most people, and web-portals are in the main a one-way
service to simply present information at present.
7 Conclusions
This article has examined the status of e-government in local authorities in Libya
with a view to assessing the potential of digital transformation and a move to digital
government.
Findings suggest that many of the so-called digital technologies are not yet ‘on the
radar’ for most local authorities in Libya. It will first be necessary to put in place the
fundamental building blocks for such a transition. In technology terms, this will mean
providing the basic hardware, software, networks, websites and security measures and
standards that most local authorities in the developed world already have. In reality, it is
not possible to ‘jump a technology stage’ – to harness the benefits of artificial
intelligence, big data, analytics, cloud computing and the like, without having the

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technology foundations in place first. Equally important are the organisational and
process changes discussed above.
Figure 7 Amendments to the TOP model following application in three case studies (see online
version for colours)
However, some of the digital technologies can act as a stimulus for such a transition. The
use of mobile computing and social media by Libyan citizens and businesses are perhaps
the two technologies that can best act as a catalyst for change in local authorities. As the
general public extend their use and knowledge of these technologies, so the pressure on
local authorities to upgrade their e-services will grow.
The TOP maturity model has proved a useful tool for assessment of local authority e-
government status in Libya. Only an overview of findings has been presented here, but
application of the model highlighted some new factors and sub-factors, which have now
been incorporated into the model (Figure 7). Future work could involve amendment of
the model to a more advanced technology environment, where the technology dimension
would encompass the full range of digital technologies, with appropriate review of the
factors and sub-factors in all three dimensions.

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