Politics and Society

Estonia is considered a role model for digital public administration. The Estonian e-residency program is the most recent e-government initiative, which promises entrepreneurs worldwide access to its public administration 24/7. In its current state, the program cannot achieve its ambitious goal due to structural misconceptions that have caused issues around its efficiency and inclusiveness.

School choice encompasses a variety of programs run by the U.S. government that allows parents to choose a school other than their local publicly funded school. Wealthy parents have been able to afford choices in education for a very long time. Now it is time that we allow poorer citizens to choose an education that best fits the needs of their children. School choice will allow this to happen.

Some Western political strategists suggest a “Tech Cold War” is playing out in Africa between China and the U.S. Based on case studies from Ethiopia and Kenya, this perspective neglects the actual state of affairs. Instead of searching for “China-free” actors, the West should take the rationale of each project as a yardstick to stay engaged and relevant in the emerging African information and communications technology sector.

COVID-19 has forced Korean society to rapidly digitalize. Though most South Koreans have access to the internet and digital technologies, some are less able to make use of these tools. Women and low-income families are most vulnerable to this digital inequality. The South Korean government should take steps to address such digital inequality, beyond the issue of digital access.

Advocacy NGOs often face challenges from political actors questioning their legitimacy. A new approach of introducing electorates nationally or regionally to grassroots organizations might protect them against such political attacks, and also serve to increase their legitimacy. The Hungarian Independent Student Parliament provides a potential model that could be replicated in other similar NGOs in and beyond Hungary.

The French Yellow Vest Movement highlighted two major determinants of success in protest movements: favorable public opinion and high collective morale. It also showed that the French government needs to refocus its protest mitigation strategy more on these two fronts in order to minimize and avoid future protest movements.