Executive summary

The purpose of this paper is to outline how the various components of the evolving e-government architecture fit together, and how - in whole or in part - they can be used by government agencies to build their own business-focused systems.

This component-based approach mimics the LEGO blocks we used as kids; standardised items that can be assembled into a huge variety of different structures. In this architecture, there are core components such as directory services and messaging services, and value-added components such as shared workspaces that depend on the core components. All of these components can be used by agencies to build the systems and capabilities necessary to support their business, and the components are available as a matter of right to Public Service departments.

The component architecture builds on the service delivery architecture described in the e-government strategy. In effect, the service delivery architecture is the "what" of e-government, while the component architecture is the "how".

Components come from a number of different sources; they are developed by the E-government Unit (EGU) to meet the requirements of inter-agency operability; they are developed by agencies to meet their own business requirements, then standardised for the rest of government; and they are developed by vendors to meet the needs of a huge range of organisations, then adopted by government.

The role of the EGU is as a designer and constructor, commissioning the creation of cross-agency components; as a broker and facilitator, ensuring that components meet the business requirements of agencies; and as a certifier, ensuring components inter-operate and that agencies have free and unfettered access to the building blocks they require. In some specialised cases, operation of the technical components will rest with the EGU, but in the majority of cases agencies will run their own systems in the same way they do today.

The list of components described in this paper is not exhaustive; rather, they are the minimum components necessary for agencies to begin building suitable systems. It is anticipated that new components will be added as agencies require new standardised capabilities, and as technology advances.

To ensure components meet the required standards and can interoperate in the manner intended, the EGU has a role in certifying them, as part of the EGU's role in managing the e-Government Interoperability Framework (e-GIF). Suitable technical components, products, vendors, implementation partners and systems can be certified as part of this programme, giving agencies the confidence that implementing these components will further the Government's e-government goals. The mechanisms of how the certification programme works are covered in a separate paper.

The goal of this approach is to allow agencies to deploy e-government capabilities better, faster and cheaper than has been possible in the past, by removing the need to build everything from the ground up. In effect, more focus and effort can go into outcomes once agencies are freed from the need to continually develop and deploy 100% of their infrastructure.