What is eDemocracy?
What is eDemocracy and how do I fit in?
e-Democracy is the use of ICTs (Information and Communication Technologies) including the Internet, mobile technologies and interactive digital television to create new deliberative discussions between government and its citizens and between citizens themselves.
It complements traditional methods of community engagement such as public meetings and workshops, so therefore it should not be viewed as a different model of democratic governance.
Rather its aim is to:
- Enhance community outcomes
- Build capacity and skills
- Encourage participation from communities and groups who are not currently actively engaged in government processes
- Helps communities engage with each other
- Enables two way consultation and exchange of views
- Promotes information sharing
e-Democracy concepts are still young and constantly evolving, with many countries running pilots and experiments to understand how the use of ICTs can change the relationship between citizens and government.
As such there is no one defining model or definition of e-Democracy and how it supplements representative, participatory and direct democracy.
Where am I in the process of achieving eDemocracy?
According to the MORI e-Democracy Local Authority Survey 2004, "Most councils view engaging local residents as one of their corporate priorities (77%) and most have a written strategy in place (76%). This has yet to translate into a similar level of support for eDemocracy, with only one in five (19%) authorities so far having a written eDemocracy strategy."
What tools are available?
The most common channel within e-Democracy is the use of the Internet, with many councils already offering over 80% of their services online.
However a wide range of other tools are available for use which may offer advantages for communicating with different groups of people. For a full list of suggested eDemocracy tools visit our eTools section.
- 1. What is eDemocracy and how do I fit in? « You are here
- 2. Do I need a long-term strategy?