E-Government Strategy Formulation in Resource Constrained Local Government in South Africa

Digital initiatives are known to support service delivery and citizen engagement, however effective implementation is limited in resource-constrained municipalities in South Africa. One prevalent reason is the lack of a well-articulated strategy to guide deployment, as well as knowledge on how to develop them contextually. This paper uses design science and Weick’s theorizing approach to develop a systems-oriented E-government strategy formulation framework at local government level, for a digital citizen engagement initiative called Project X. The strategy formulation process became fundamental in engaging stakeholders and mapping for the effective operation of the digital initiative.