The 2020 UNPAN Members Meeting took place on 14 July 2020 during which the version one of the newly redesigned United Nations Public Administration Network (UNPAN) website was launched.  The meeting was opened by Mr. Juwang Zhu, Director of the Division for Public Institutions and Digital Government (DPIDG) of UN DESA. Mr. Zhu reiterated the importance of focusing on how to advance the UNPAN as a “collaborative network”.  While he stressed that collaborative initiatives are ongoing among UNPAN members and opportunities to share knowledge are already in place, he asked members to reflect on how we can do better and do more. He mentioned that it is important to take stock of lessons learned in building and mobilizing resources to make the network stronger. The Report of the meeting will be available soon. We invite you to provide comments for UNPAN's version two, which will include a dynamic platform by email to unpan@un.org.

The 2020 UN E-Government Survey has been launched. The Survey found that progress in digital government has been made across all regions, including the least developed countries. 42 countries moved to higher levels of e-government development. Yet, despite the gains and major investments in e-government by many countries, the digital divide persists. Alongside these trends, the COVID-19 pandemic has not only reinvigorated the role of digital government in its conventional delivery of public services and in ensuring business continuity, it has also brought about innovative ways in managing the crisis. The Survey looks at how digital government can facilitate integrated policies and services across 193 UN Member States. The Survey supports countries’ efforts to provide effective, accountable and inclusive digital services to all and to bridge the digital divide and leave no one behind. The Survey is available here.