The Challenges Facing the Deployment and Use of IT for the Development Literature review

The Challenges Facing the Deployment and Use of IT for the Development of Public Sector in Saudi Arabia - Literature review Example The rapid economic growth being experienced in the country has largely been as a result of the oil that is exported to other parts of the world. As a growing economy, the country needs to not only develop its infrastructure, but also improve its service delivery to the people (Benington, 2000). Information technology is an aspect of development that is sweeping across many developing countries today, and Saudi Arabia has definitely not been left behind. The implementation of IT plans has greatly helped the country improve the way its citizens get access to public services (Al-zharani, 2009). Using IT Resources The Saudi Communications Commission is the one regulates the deployments and use of IT resources in the country. Among the commission’s responsibilities include: ensuring that the communications services provided are well advanced, regulating the telecommunications sector, creating an environment for fair competition among different players in the telecommunications fiel d and securing the rights of the public to have access to information networks at prices they can afford. In short, this commission is responsible for how the country makes use of its existing structures to deploy and implement IT for the greater good and development of the Saudi public sector (Khan, 2011). Although the country has made some tremendous achievement in creating an information society, there remains a lot to be done so as to ensure that the IT infrastructures are as efficient as possible so as to serve as many people as possible. This means that the government has to consider some of the challenges that hinder the deployment and use of IT for the development of the Saudi public sector including government agencies and come up with ways to ensure that all people enjoy the full benefits of a networked society (Khosrowpour, 2000). Knowledge Workers and the Knowledge Society Knowledge workers include the valued individuals who earn a living by developing and applying knowl edge in specific areas of study. On the other hand, the knowledge society is a society that values knowledge as the primary resource used in production as opposed to labour and capital. Knowledge workers exist in a wide range of fields in Saudi Arabia. With their vast knowledge in their specific areas of interest, the knowledge workers are able to define problems and come up with solutions that affect society, strategies and help in decision making. The making of knowledge workers normally is influenced by the establishment of information technology of the places in which they are based. In Saudi Arabia, the making of more knowledge workers has been influenced by the establishment of e-learning and the availability of ICT resources. The deployment and use of IT for the development of the public sector requires the development of more knowledge workers so as to ensure that they are well equipped to deal with the IT tools at their disposal. Though the government through its e-governme nt efforts is trying to ensure that most areas in the public sector are well equipped with IT technology, there are a number of challenges it experiences (Benington, 2000). One of the challenges that the country faces in terms of knowledge worker development in the area of IT proficiency is the lack of technical skills. Very few of the employees working in the public sector have the proper knowledge to carry out some of the duties that would involve