Envisioning Agile Government: Learning from the Japanese Concept of Society 5.0 and the Challenge of Public Administration in Developing Countries

摘要

Technological developments have shaped changes in communication and the ways people aspire for public services. Rigid, flaccid and slow bureaucratic type of organizations are no longer compatible with the new challenges in the so-called "disruptive environment". This paper tries to elaborate on the emergence of disruptive environment in which changes occur very quickly while the decision makers might not have adequate time to discern and to gauge the impact of policy alternatives. Creating agile governments, therefore, is a fundamental requirement in almost all countries. On the government response to harness the disruptive environment and to create an agile government, the Japanese vision of Society 5.0 is an interesting example to be considered by decision makers in developing countries. Under this vision, the use of IoT, AI, and robotics in providing public services, means that all policy makers need to find new ways to transform towards intelligent societies. Not only that agile government and the new public administration would be able to protect people from digital divide, but also that it would create a humane environment in which all the technology-based public services would improve prosperity and well-being for all.