E-Government as an anti-corruption strategy in EU countries

Abstract

Governments around the world are recognizing the power of the use of information and communication technologies (ICT), the utilization of digitized inter-connective communication systems linking governmental organizations and its stakeholders. European Union's member countries have gone a long journey in this area in the last two decades. One of the consequences of the implementation of ICT in public administration is also the restriction of the public official´s discretion, thus also reduction of corruption in the public sector. This paper is focus on the potential impact of e-Government on the level of corruption in the European Union's member countries. Specifically, this paper examines the impact of the use of ICT represented by the E-government Development Index on the evaluation of the level of corruption in the public sector represented by the Corruption Perception Index in 28 member countries of the European Union.