Transitioning from Use to Effective Use of Digital Innovation Platforms for Development: An Evergreen Discussion

The disruptions of different nature occurring since the onset of pandemics such as Ebola & Covid19 have exposed the imperative to re-imagine digital transformation, towards a more realistic goal-oriented perspective. Public sector organizations in many countries around the global south are at a crossroads, where the digital solutions at their disposal must be efficient, to address situations beyond technology adoption. Recent discussions have advocated for understanding what effective use of digital platforms is, as this would serve as a backbone between a system and the benefits it can deliver. In this research, we tackle the pressing imperative of using health information systems effectively for efficient organizational transformation. The insights discussed in this research will assist both scholars and professionals in reflecting on the digital transformation of public organizations in the global south, and the drivers behind the effective use of health information systems in fragmented economies

Organisational Agility and IT Alignment in Public Organisations

Prior studies confirming the favourable outcome of IT alignment in enabling organisations to achieve organisational agility which, in turn, is reflected in improved organisational performance, has been debated among IS researchers. The phenomenon ‘alignment-agility paradox’, referring to the unintended outcome of IT alignment resulting in organisational rigidity, has surfaced in the literature following the contradictory findings of empirical studies. However, researchers argue that the relationship between IT alignment and organisational agility is the function of contextual organisational factors—both internal organisational factors as well as external environment. Since most IT alignment studies are conducted in developed countries focusing on commercial and private organisations, this study is poised to investigate the relationship between the two constructs within the context of public organisations in two developing countries

An Affordance-based Approach for Assessing Effective Use of Health Management Information Systems in Low-Resources Context

Assessing effective use of health Management information systems (HMIS) in low-resource settings is critical to improving public health. However, mainstreaming information systems into daily practice can be challenging in dynamic, isolated settings where technology adoption is often not a priority. It is essential to design tools that address user needs and are deemed useful. In this paper, we propose a generic framework that applies effective use theory and affordance actualization theory to assess how HMIS are used efficiently in organizations and identify areas operational vulnerabilities. The proposed study uses a mixed-methods approach to data collection and analysis. This framework contributes to the information systems utilization literature by providing a method for contextualizing the assessment of effective utilization by giving relevance to specific information management tasks. From a practical perspective, it aims to guide information systems practitioners in low-resource environments in strengthening their digital organizational information systems

Transforming Marginalized Communities through Virtual Healthcare during a Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has encouraged governments and public health administrators to rapidly adopt digital solutions and advanced public health information systems. Sub-Saharan African countries have also made transitions to the digital platforms in response to the unprecedented challenges related to the delivery of health services. However, acceptance and use of such digital solutions was found to differ between countries. Based on these gaps, we build a conceptual representation that is based on the Technology Maturity Index. This conceptual mapping highlights the technological optimism, associated with innovation, while showing the perceived usefulness and usage of Telehealth. In this research, we elaborate a set of proposals to increase the body of knowledge regarding the implementation of technologies for health and to provide decision makers with key evidence for the implementation of policies for the development of community digital solutions

A Framework for Standardization of Distributed Ledger Technologies for Interoperable Data Integration and Alignment in Sustainable Smart Cities

Distributed ledger technologies (DLTs) are considered one of the foremost emerging technologies which can contribute to transform cities to smarter cities. DLT play important role in municipalities to accelerate the digitalization process toward changing the roles and services of enterprises in sustainable smart cities. Standardization of DLTs aids to reduce data and digital assets silos while decreasing vendor lock-in across distributed applications enabling a digital urban ecosystem that supports migration capabilities making it possible for cities to seamlessly achieve interoperability among DLTs and centralized digital platforms, although a few standards such as IEEE 2418, IEEE P2418.5, and ISO/TC 307 have been developed. The alignment and integration mechanisms required to support standardization of DLT for interoperable services in smart cities is lacking. Therefore, this study presents an understanding on current and open issues on standardization of DLTs in sustainable smart cities with a specific focus on data integration and alignment efforts related to interoperable DLTs. A framework is developed to promote standardization of DLTs to support integration and alignment for interoperability in smart cities. Design science research methodology was adopted based on three use case scenarios which illustrates how IOTA tangle is employs as a DLT for secured standardized communication between physical sensors, devices, and digital platforms in smart city environment. Findings from this article provide exploratory evidence demonstrating the potential uses of IOTA tangle through the developed framework applied for decentralized and centralized digital services. Based on this evidence, this study provides interface integration and alignment strategies to better exploit distributed applications full potential by improving DLT standardization in urban environment.publishedVersio

The Relationship Between Organisational Agility and IT Alignment in Public Organisations

Three-decades long IS research suggests that Information technology (IT) alignment is regarded as one of the pervasive issues among researchers and practitioners. Given the current dynamic business environment, organisations need to foresee external changes and make necessary adjustments (i.e., they need to be agile) while attempting to achieve and maintain IT alignment. However, the research on the two streams—IT alignment and organisational agility—seems not to overlap yet. On the other hand, the prior studies investigating the relationship between the two constructs report contradictory findings. To address the lack of knowledge about the influence of organisational agility on IT alignment in the public sector, this study presents the results of a mixed-method research conducted in four sub-city administrations in the capital of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa. The findings suggest that organisations success to reach IT alignment while aiming for organisational agility is the function of environmental volatility and stakeholder relationships

Social media for universities’ strategic communication

In the field of digitalisation and the acceptance of technologies, African universities are seriously behind the movement of their counterparts in Europe, the USA, and Asia. At a time when universities in different continents are facing increasing competition, they have come to realise that social media is a powerful and effective way to promote their activities and thus significantly improve the sector. This study informs about the purpose of social media in higher education in Africa, in that it assesses the various potentials and objectives that African universities can achieve using social media. Also, the chapter draws a holistic vision while focusing specifically on social media for communication in an African context, recognising the specific challenges facing African universities. Subsequently, the chapter lists several vital social media that are typically used by universities with a focus on the type of use and the different scopes. The chapter also highlights best practices for universities wishing to improve their social media communication strategies while listing potential implications for university engagement via social media

Citizens' Acceptance of E-democracy : when the Theory of the Reasoned Action meets the Civic Voluntarism Model

The emergence of new digital technologies coupled with the increasing demand from citizens for better public service, transparency, and efficiency has contributed to the growing adoption of Information Technology (IT) in the public sector. E-democracy, which is at the crossroads between e-government and e-participation, is regarded as a phenomenon that could improve the democratic processes. However, the extant literature indicates that the low E-democracy acceptance and lack of e-government services adoption have contributed to the unrealized benefit from public sector digitalization. To address the gap in the literature and contribute to practice, our study explores the citizens' E-democracy acceptance by combining the theory of reasoned action and the civic voluntarism model. Based on our literature review, the proposed theoretical model will be evaluated and tested using Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). In addition to the interviews, we plan to collect empirical data from Citizens in Rural municipalities in Cameroon

Managing Misinformation within the Public Sector : Cases from the Global South

The advances in digital technologies and improved digital literacy have provided myriads of opportunities for societies. Particularly in the public sphere, improved digitalisation has meant better access to information for citizens, among others. Digital technologies, such as social media, have been proven invaluable in events such as a public health crisis such as COVID-19. However, the adoption of these technologies has also brought challenges related to misinformation, where publicly available information is manipulated and disseminated for purposes that are against the public interest. This paper presents an ongoing empirical study that attempts to explore the measures taken by the public sector to manage misinformation. The study, conducted in two developing countries, explores the immediate and long-term approaches to tackling misinformation. The implication of the expected results for research and practice are also presented

Breaking the Digital Divide in Rural Africa

Telecentres are considered to be invaluable in reducing the digital divide between cities and villages. In most developing countries, once telecentres are well organized and functional, and when awareness-raising on the merits of telecentres is well established, it is expected that people will embrace and integrate them into everyday practices and habits. This qualitative study, adopting a mixed research method, explores the adoption of Multipurpose Community Telecentres in rural areas of Cameroon. The focus of the study is to highlight the digitalization needs of marginalized communities. The results suggest that several target groups never had access to the Internet, and some have never used an ICT tool. This study thus attempts to propose an extension of the UTAUT model with Cameroonian factors of influence such as Culture and Language. We adopted a mixed research method to contribute to the extant literature on telecentres in Africa, highlighting their impact on rural communities