OECD country experiences show that the success of e-government initiatives is dependent on the establishment of a proper legal and regulatory framework. E-government programmes and activities require in fact a legal framework – legislation, guidelines and standards – that enables online provision of services and information; and often archaic laws, old regulatory regimes, and overlapping and conflicting responsibilities have shown to complicate the implementation of e-government projects. The development of a e-friendly regulatory framework should therefore be a priority in the definition of any national e-government strategy.

OECD experiences indicate that to establish the adequate legal and regulatory framework countries can opt for different strategies and approaches. There is no right approach to the development of a proper legal and regulatory framework as the national cultural and administrative context matters. Nevertheless, a common problem is the need of taking into account the need of ensuring the sustainability of laws that target technology. As technology changes rapidly, the legal and regulatory framework for e-government should be technologically neutral and instead of defining the technology to be used it should specify the performance or results desired.

The presentation provides an overview on the importance of establishing an adequate legal and regulatory framework for e-government and on the different approaches adopted by OECD countries to reach this objective.