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How COVID-19 Has Affected the Digitalization of Government in 2020

There were big changes with the emergence of COVID-19, showing that many more countries and municipalities are pursuing digital government strategies.


COVID has changed everyday life in meaningful ways. If you work in government, you know one of those ways is a sudden increase in the reliance on online services. In order to see the effects of this, we at Cludo took a deep look into the U.N Department of Economic and Social Affairs’ recent 2020 E-Government survey results. This survey is consistently established as a leading bench-marking reference on e-government, and a tool for policy makers.

There were big changes this year, showing that many more countries and municipalities are pursuing digital government strategies. As your institutions move more and more online, there may be one part of your online presence that has to be updated: site search. Below we will discuss some of the main points of the survey to see some ways that search can support your government digitalization.

  1. Increased mobile usage

The 2020 study discussed that most city portals are still offering basic features and may not have the time or resources to explore emerging technologies. But one great development found is that nearly all city portals and websites are now accessible from mobile devices. As mobile device uses increases (now accounting for 48% of website traffic worldwide) you need to ensure that ALL your technology works well with it. That means ensuring your website, your login portal, and any other technology you work with, has a consistent design for mobile devices as well. Since we make search technology, we will use that as an example. Does your SERP match the rest of your online experience?

  1. One-stop “shopping” experience

The U.N study found that one development of the last year is that more and more governments are attempting to create a more efficient, one-stop-shop experience to digital government. Not only does it make the information gathering process easier for your users, it also alleviates constituent phone calls and pressure on your team.

Search is one of the best ways to tie all of your information together into a comprehensive platform. You must serve multiple audiences with your website, portal and other online options. Search is one of the best ways to connect all of those services, and allow users to find the information or actions they need easily.

  1. Leadership and resource barriers

One of the other factors this study took time to address is that many countries with a lower level of online services often face barriers of leadership or policy-making. These countries, cities or counties may struggle with normal issues like communication, many projects, or competing priorities.

If your community struggles with these challenges, that’s completely understandable. We recommend using resources like our blog, “Convince Your Boss to Invest in a Site Search Solution.” Most software and portals offer similar resources for you to use, or they will be able to create them when you request.

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