ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF ICT ON REVENUE COLLECTION ON THE SIERRA LEONE ECONOMY (A CASE STUDY OF THE NATIONAL REVENUE AUTHORITY) CHAPTER ONE
1.1 Background To The Study
Many Developing countries have seen the
need for the adoption of ICT and the planned implementation of national
ICT strategy as a significant component in the success of ICT efforts to
foster rapid national development through greater productivity. The
term ICT refers to Information and communication technology which
consist of electronic technologies which facilitate access to
information such as the Internet, wireless networks, and cellular phones
(WEF, 2012).
The effective adoptions of ICT enable
the governments to propel rapid productivity gains through different
economic sectors in the nation. The government now view Information and
communication technologies as a strategy to enhance rapid national
development through ICT-driven productivity gains (Masanet &
Matthews, 2010).Consequently the coordinated effort of government is
required in this direction to adopt and implement a more robust and
integrated ICT platform for an effective system of service delivery.
(IDB, 2009). It is important to note that sirrea-lone requires an
integrated ICT agenda to sustain its national developmental expectations
(WEF, 2012). The benefit of ICT adoption permeates public sector
workplace productivity (Masanet & Matthews, 2010). Public sector
workplace productivity therefore impacts on business efficiencies
resulting in resource efficiency, enhanced customer interface and
revenue collection, cost control mechanisms, energy savings, and
reducing negative environmental effects through using ICT applications
(Masanet & Matthews, 2010).Borisov and Barbulescu (2012) postulated
the adoption of the term electronic government which he stated consist
of ICT tools and systems which is used to access and efficiently
deliver public services to all stakeholders . (Bannister & Wilson,
2011).The adoption of ICT has facilitated easy access and interaction
between government and its citizens .Also the development of mobile
technologies, new web browsers, social media applications and sites, has
provided the government with new tools to enhance the needs of
e-government, which facilitate the development of an efficient system to
manage public services geared at improving public’s confidence in
government services (Borisov & Barbulescu, 2012).
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The need for the adoption of ICT and the
planned implementation of national ICT strategy as a significant
component in the success of ICT efforts to foster rapid national
development through greater productivity in revenue collection cannot be
over emphasized. Borisov and Barbulescu (2012) postulated the adoption
of the term electronic government which he stated consist of ICT
tools and systems which is used to access and efficiently deliver
public services to all stakeholders . (Bannister & Wilson,
2011).The adoption of ICT has facilitated easy access and interaction
between government and its citizens .Also the development of mobile
technologies, new web browsers, social media applications and sites, has
provided the government with new tools to enhance the needs of
e-government, which facilitate the development of an efficient system to
manage public services of collecting revenues geared at improving
public’s confidence in government services. Consequently the coordinated
effort of government is required in this direction to adopt and
implement a robust and integrated ICT platform for an effective system
of service delivery. (IDB, 2009). It is important to note that sirrea-
lone requires an integrated ICT agenda to sustain its national
developmental expectations (WEF, 2012).Consequently the problem
confronting the research is to determine the impact of ICT on revenue
collection on the sierra Leone economy (A case study of the National
Revenue Authority)
1.3 Objectives of the Study
To determine the impact of ICT on
revenue collection on the Sierra Leone economy (A case study of the
National Revenue Authority)
1.4 Research Questions
What is the impact of ICT on revenue collection on the Sierra Leone Economy?
What is the impact of revenue collection in the National Revenue Authority?
1.5 Significance of the Study
The research seek to assess the impact
of ICT on revenue collection on the Sierra Leone economy .A case study
of the National Revenue Authority
The effective adoptions of ICT enable
the governments to propel rapid productivity gains through different
economic sectors in the nation. The government now view Information and
communication technologies as a strategy to enhance rapid national
development through ICT-driven productivity gains (Masanet &
Matthews, 2010).Consequently the coordinated effort of government is
required in this direction to adopt and implement a more robust and
integrated ICT platform for an effective system of service delivery.
(IDB, 2009). It is important to note that sirrea-lone requires an
integrated ICT agenda to sustain its national developmental expectations
(WEF, 2012). The benefit of ICT adoption permeates public sector
workplace productivity (Masanet & Matthews, 2010). Public sector
workplace productivity therefore impacts on business efficiencies
resulting in resource efficiency, enhanced customer interface and
revenue collection, cost control mechanisms, energy savings, and
reducing negative environmental effects through using ICT applications
1.6 Research Hypothesis
Ho The impact of ICT on revenue collection in National Revenue Authority is low
Hi The impact of ICT on revenue collection in National Revenue Authority is high
1.7 Scope of the Study
The research focuses on the appraisal of
the impact of ICT on revenue collection on the Sierra Leone economy (A
case study of the National Revenue Authority)
1.8 Limitations of the Study
The research was confronted by some constraint including logistics and geographical factors.
1.9 Definition of Terms
ICT DEFINED
ICT refers to Information and
communication technology which consist of electronic technologies
which facilitate access to information such as the Internet, wireless
networks, and cellular phones (WEF, 2012). The development of mobile
technologies, new web browsers, social media applications and sites, has
provided the government with new tools to enhance the needs of
e-government, which facilitate the development of an efficient system to
manage public services geared at improving public’s confidence in
government services (Borisov & Barbulescu, 2012).
REFERNCES
Borisov, D., & Barbulescu, G. (2012, September). A statistical outlook on the
Development of E-government and digital divide in Romania. Management
Research and Practice, 4(3), 46-56.
Georgescu, M. (2012). E-government: New
perspectives on the future of government digitization. Annales
Universitatis Apulensis: Series Oeconomica, 14(2), 369-384.