Book

Description

Digital government is often approached as a technological challenge: governments develop information systems, establish interoperability platforms, connect agencies, and expand digital public services. Yet technical connectivity alone does not guarantee effective data exchange or sustainable digital transformation. This book examines the structural relationship between data governance and interoperability in digital government. Using the Kyrgyz Republic and the broader Central Asian context as a practical case, it challenges the assumption that integration should be the starting point of digital transformation and proposes a shift toward a data-first approach. The first part analyzes the limitations of the integration-first model and identifies two interconnected structural problems: the lack of a comprehensive understanding of the government data landscape and the semantic fragmentation of data across information systems. It proposes a Data-First Digital Government model based on data inventory, governance, standardization, core registries, interoperability, and digital services. The second part focuses on reference data as a critical component of semantic interoperability. It examines the growing complexity of classification mappings between government systems and proposes the concept of a National Reference Data Layer (NRDL) as a shared architectural and governance mechanism for managing classifications, code lists, and reference data. The book is intended for digital government professionals, public sector IT architects, policymakers, data governance specialists, researchers, and practitioners involved in the design and modernization of national digital infrastructure.