COVID-19 and real e-government and e-learning Adoption in Iraq

ABSTRACT

Today, e-government services globally are a true indicator of the growth of countries and societies, and it's a mirror of the country. With all the digital conditions, Iraqi society is growing and continuing its movement towards building an information society without any significant government influence. According to the United Nations e-government survey 2018 and 2020, Iraq placed in the 155th, and 143th position among the world countries, and according to the ITE statistical reports, 103 % of Iraqi citizens have cell phones (82 % according to World Bank reports), and 100 % of these cell phones are smart phones. With 17 % using the Internet, the %age among the Iraqi population is rising. These numbers suggest that Iraqi society can easily be an electronic society, but the truth on the ground says something entirely different, and it's as simple as there's no true Iraqi e-government. The pandemic of Covid-19 proves that Iraqi society has the capacity to use online services. The main reason for this weakness is the failure of ongoing e-learning trials in the Iraqi education and higher education systems in Iraq. Today, the Iraqi Ministry of Higher Education (MOHEDSR) is actually beginning to successfully adopt e-learning services through ministry and university capabilities, not e-government support, in all Iraqi higher education sectors. Digital skills are required to prepare for future occupations. © 2021 IEEE.