Technological foundations of electronic governance

This paper explores the relevance and opportunities for the application of mature Formal Techniques – techniques based on mathematical theories and supported by industry-ready tools and methods – to build technical solutions for Electronic Governance. The paper proceeds in four steps: (1) establishes the basic need for Formal Techniques in Electronic Governance, (2) identifies the challenges peculiar to Electronic Governance development, (3) presents the salient features and various application scenarios for Formal Techniques in general, and (4) carries out a mapping between the challenges to Electronic Governance and various application scenarios of Formal Techniques as part of solutions to such challenges. In the second part, the paper presents an overview of the tutorial and workshop on Formal Engineering Methods for Electronic Governance. The tutorial follows the four-step program, as above, and the workshop includes the presentations of four papers that exemplify various elements of the mapping, particularly: the use of formal, precise modeling techniques; the importance of security risk assessment; model-driven development of software systems; and the provision of semantic frameworks to coordinate development within and across major programs and initiatives. In the last part, the paper discusses how Formal Techniques can contribute to establishing a solid foundation for Electronic Governance