Affiliation:
1. University of Kansas, USA
Abstract
E-government in Europe has changed significantly in the years since 2017. This chapter begins by briefly summarizing the nature and impacts of e-government. It then offers a broad overview based on the continent's internet penetration rates and the United Nations' e-government readiness and e-participation scores. Third, it points to national variations in e-government implementation, noting successes and failures, and stresses the significant geographic unevenness among and even within countries. It discusses these patterns in light of the continent's digital divide and varying governance structures. The fourth part addresses technical and social changes in the period 2017-2021, including cloud computing, mobile e-government, trans-national e-governance, and the covid pandemic. Throughout, the chapter emphasizes the temporal and spatial variability in e-government practices as a cautionary tale against simplistic interpretations that eschew local contexts.