World Bank updates its GovTech maturity index

The World Bank has improved Kazakhstan’s position in the 2022 GovTech Maturity Index (GTMI), which covers 198 countries, the bank’s press service reported.

The index reflects what countries have done in the area of GovTech: support of the key GovTech systems, improving public services, more active participation of citizens and facilitation for the development of overall digitalization.

In the GTMI 2022 update, Kazakhstan has been promoted to group A, which includes the leading countries in this sphere. Previously, Kazakhstan was in group B, which combines a group of countries focused on the development of the GovTech.

«The index reflects the situation with digital transformation in 198 countries, which are divided into four groups: A, B, C and D. In 2022, Kazakhstan has managed to take a step up from group B to group A. This result is based on new data about the progress the country has shown in the four priority areas,» the WB press service said.

However, the global financial entity has also pointed to a lack of information about the functionality of the current digital platforms and a low level of digital engagement from regular citizens.

The World Bank is going to announce the results of GTMI 2022 in detail in the coming months.

In 2020, when the bank conducted the last such survey of digital transformation around the globe, Kazakhstan was ranked in group B along with 58 other countries while group A included 43 states.

In July, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed a set of amendments that open the way for broader use of digital documents. Now both hard copies and digital copies of documents are equally accepted everywhere. Public agencies can’t require hard copies of documents if they have access to their digital copies downloaded to the public information systems.

It is expected that digital transformation in Kazakhstan will eliminate the breeding ground for bureaucracy.