Freedom of choice is a right that shouldn’t be addressed as a privilege. The freedom to choose and get access to government services online with understandable instructions rather than hours of walking and waiting merely to complete simple documentation is not an option right now for many people. The main aim of service delivery should be an assurance of taking inclusive approach. Inclusive approach includes all communities of people irrespective of their caste, creed, or gender; in basic terms, it is a bridge to give access to governmental services to all individuals of the country.
But looking at the current scenario, the service delivery of government bodies is nowhere near the core principle it is based upon. The marginalized people of the country still feel that the freedom of being able to gain access to government services is a privilege. This makes marginalized communities, even more vulnerable.
According to a recent report from NTA about 91% of the Nepalese population has access to the internet. From social media to the use of search engines, the population makes the best use they can of the resources at hand. Despite the internet penetration, we are not yet able to fully utilize this advantage and implement it in strengthening governance. For example, someone in a remote part of Nepal would have access to the internet but still would have to walk hours to the Local Level for minor paperwork. Its marginalized communities, who usually will have to face this problem.
The fact that service delivery that should help cope up with the problems of access, complicated procedure, and illiteracy, has instead given rise to a new scenario. The scenario shows that the gaps between the individuals who can easily understand the work procedure and the ones who feel dilemma in each step of the procedure of governmental services have deepened.
What the country needs right now isn’t just plans and policies that brag about being gender friendly or addressing the marginalized groups. What we all need is the implementation of a kind of service delivery, where no individual should feel that governance services are burdensome. This is only possible by opting for digital tools and trends to make Governance and service delivery efficient. Not just opting to tools and technologies, but those who actually solve real time issues and are impactful to Minorities, Marginalized, and Vulnerable Groups.
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