Under the e-Government Action Plan II, infocomm technologies had enabled both local and overseas citizens to stay connected and engaged with Singapore. Accessing public information, participating in public policy consultations and providing feedback to Government can now all be done online with ease.  Our iGov2010 efforts will continue to complement existing non-electronic service delivery initiatives and take the Government-citizen relationship to the next level, one where citizens are actively engaged in the policy-making process.

To achieve these, online information need to be clear and useful and presented in a vibrant and interesting manner.  The Singapore Government Online Portal www.gov.sg – the gateway to all Government information and e-services - will have an improved look-and-feel, better content search facilities and clearer presentation of information on Government policies and services.  For example, illustrations and bite-size video snippets could be used to bring across messages in a more vivid manner.  In addition, the effectiveness and appeal of online Government channels need to be enhanced to attract citizens to participate in online exchanges and provide feedback to the Government.

We will also provide separate consultation spaces for Businesses, Youths and Overseas Singaporeans in the Government’s one-stop, interactive Online Consultation Portal for national issues and policy proposals (www.feedback.gov.sg). 

These spaces will focus on the dialogues, themes and consultations which are of concern and interest to the respective groups.  For example, a business does not have to comb through the entire slew of consultation papers to determine if they are relevant to the business.  Correspondingly, it will also be easier for public agencies to hear views coming from the different segments.

Besides engaging citizens in policy-making and reviews, online channels will also be leveraged to foster greater bonding within different communities such as youths.  The Youth Portal, Youth.sg, set up in 25th February 2006, is a first stop resource portal for community participation, and a virtual space for young Singaporeans who want to make a difference to the people around them. Youth.sg offers young Singaporeans easy access to information on how to start their own community activities, as well as information on initiatives that fellow youth are engaged in.