THE EFFECT OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS ON PERFORMANCE OF GOVERNMENT AGENCIESIN UGANDA

A CASE OF

INTRODUCTION

1.1Introduction

The aim of the study is to investigate the effect of information systems on performance of Uganda Revenue Authority. In this study, an information system is the independent variable and performance is the dependent variable. The key dimensions for information systems will be; Information systems software, information systems infrastructure and user knowledge and skills. While performance will be measured inform of financial performance, customer satisfaction and growth.

According to Asongu, & Le Roux, (2017), Government across the world are investing heavily into the Information systems to enable better financial performance, increased customer satisfaction and growth of government organizations for example UK government spent 124.8 billion US dollars from 2008 to 2017 to develop the Information systems to enable them serve their customers timely and efficiently there by maximizing on their performance. However, no researcher currently has investigated the effect of Information systems on organizational performance at URA, this has prompted the researcher to establish the effect of Information systems on performance in government agencies.

This chapter presents the background of the study, the problem statement, purpose, objectives of the study, research questions, study scope, justification of the study, significance, Hypotheses, conceptual framework, as well as operational definition of key terms and concepts.

1.2 Background of the study

The section presents literature on the evolution of the Information systems concept under three perspectives: historical Background, theoretical Background, conceptual Background and contextual background.

1.2.1 Historical Background

The beginning of information systems can be traced back with the invention of Herman Hollerith’s census tabulator, Invented in time to process the 1890 U.S. census this represented a major step in automation and the inspiration to the development of the information systems Era. The first computers used for information processing was the UNIVAC I, installed at the U.S. Bureau of the Census in 1951 for administrative use and at General Electric in 1954 for commercial use this gave way for the adoption of personal computers in the late 1970s (Pearlson et al., 2016).

Information system has progressed through personal computer era to client server era and currently to enterprise internet, this has been spearheaded by the United States military department since 1945 whose main goal has been to eliminate communication barriers and enable better performance; however, this technological advancement has been adopted by most governments across the globe to help in the improvement of performance (Kim et al., 2009).

According to the adoption of internet can be traced back with the invention of the world wide web in 1991 by Tim Berners lee, this gave way to the adoption of internet in government organizations like in Health, Education and administration globally (Ricci  et al., 2015).

Adoption of computers in Africa can be traced in 1960 with the introduction of the first IBM 1401 data processing system in Johannesburg South Africa which was installed in the IBM Service Bureau and was first unveiled in October 1959 (Dwivedi et al., 2015).

Other African countries started using computers after south Africa especially by the late 1990s most of the government across the sub-Saharan Africa started adopting information systems in the running of the daily activities and as of 2017, Africa had more than 450 million internet users with specific countries like Nigeria individually having 98 million users and Egypt having 49.23 million this has been spear headed by countries to enhance better performance (Ziemba, E. (2017, September).

Toots, M (2016) asserts that the use of information systems by the government has been adopted by countries in East Africa like Kenya in key sectors like education, Health, revenue collection and management of water resources to improve on the efficiency of the government key agencies (Cirera, Lage, & Sabetti, 2016).

The adoption of Information systems in Uganda can be traced from the introduction of the first computer ever in Uganda in 1967 in Ministry of Finance and in 1968, the second mainframe arrived at Makerere University, however, it was not until June 2006 that the Government of Uganda created a Ministry of ICT to enhance the adoption of information systems in the government agencies in Uganda (Ramadani, 2017).

According to URA, (2015) URA has made great strides in improving service delivery through the adoption of information systems, this has been through introduction of electronic methods like e-registration, e-fling, e-declaration of customs transactions and e-payment, in addition to that in 2010, to offer personalised services to taxpayers, the organization created taxpayer-centric Portal (https://ura.go.ug), to provide 24/7 electronic service delivery, anytime, anywhere with quick & high quality e-services and greater degree of transparency to taxpayers.

Secondly with the adoption of information systems, most of the borders provide 24/7 services including Entebbe airport, this has resulted into reduction in service turnaround time with minimal physical interaction with the Department and reduction in taxpayer’s visit to URA through the adoption of information systems techniques. various e-service payment method have been implemented ranging from Pay Way to MTN mobile payment, Mobile App.

Since the establishment of URA in 1991, there have been many challenges related to revenue collection and the accessibility of its services by tax payers and as of 2003 URA adopted Asycuda ++ to enable easier collection of taxes and management however realization of the weaknesses of ASYCUDA ++, URA adopted ASYCUDA world in 2011 to enhance better performance within the organization and reduce on unnecessary costs. According to Observer, Ssempogo, H (2013, April 16^th) indicates that in 2011 URA decided to upgrade from Asycuda++ to Asycuda World in order to respond to the ever changing business needs. Asycuda World is more robust and flexible and, therefore, able to adapt to the different settings, it also provides an easier channel for interconnectivity with other systems.

1.2.2 Theoretical background

Diffusion of Innovation theory will guide the study to establish the effect of information systems on performance of government agencies. According to Haung  $ kapur, (2007) the diffusion of innovation theory states that diffusion is governed by four elements, the innovation itself, communication channels, time and social systems. The four elements, explain the process of change as determined by employees and the whole organization.

Diffusion assumes that the propensity to adopt an innovation is primarily a function of the availability of information. It also assumes that in the dissemination of information particularly at the local scale, personal contacts are of much greater significance than the mass media (Deligiannaki & Ali, 2011).

Diffusion of innovations theory is often simplified to concentrate solely on a product or innovation. Little attention has been paid on the complex cultural, economic, technology and other factors that determine organizational performance (Green et al., 2009). This theory therefore describes the adoption of information systems at URA as a product of availability of information to the management of the organization which led to innovation of information systems.

1.2.3 Conceptual background

Information system (IS) is the study of complementary networks of hardware and software that people and organizations use to collect, filters, process, create and distribute data. Information Systems encompasses a variety of disciplines such as: the analysis and design of systems, computer networking, information security, database management, and decision support systems, (Jessup, and Valacich, 2008).

Information systems, is an organized combination of people, hard ware, software, communication network, and data resources, policies and procedures to form the activities that stores, retrieves, transform data resources into information. Information systems (IS) are the study of complementary networks of hardware and software that people and organizations use to collect, filter, process, create, and distribute data. Information systems are combinations of hardware, software, and telecommunications networks that people build and use to collect, create, and distribute useful data, typically in organizational settings (Valacich & Schneider, 2015).

Information systems are interrelated components working together to collect, process, store, and disseminate information to support decision making, coordination, control, analysis, and visualization in an organization.

The Components of Information Systems include; Technology; this can be thought of as the application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes. From the invention of the wheel to the harnessing of electricity for artificial lighting, technology is a part of our lives in so many ways that we tend to take it for granted.

The components of information systems hardware, software, and data all fall under the category of technology.

Hardware; Information systems hardware is the part of an information system which involves physical components of the technology. Computers, keyboards, disk drives, iPads, and flash drives are all examples of information systems hardware.

Software; Software is a set of instructions that tells the hardware what to do. Software is not tangible it cannot be touched. When programmers create software programs, what they are really doing is simply typing out lists of instructions that tell the hardware what to do. There are several categories of software, with the two main categories being operating-system software, which makes the hardware usable, and application software, which does something useful. Examples of operating systems include Microsoft Windows on a personal computer and Google’s Android on a mobile phone.

Computer software, or simply software, is a collection of data or computer instructions that tell the computer how to work, in contrast to the physical hardware from which the system is built, that actually performs the work. Computer software includes computer programs, libraries and related non-executable data, such as online documentation or digital media. Computer hardware and software require each other and neither can be realistically used on its own (Takieddine & Sun, 2015).

An information system Infrastructure is the foundation or framework that supports a system or organization. In computing, information technology infrastructure is composed of physical and virtual resources that support the flow, storage, processing and analysis of data. Infrastructure may be centralized within a data centre, or it may be decentralized and spread across several data centres that are either controlled by the organization or by a third party, such as a collocation facility or cloud provider (Gilmour et al., 2015)..

Infrastructure components often includes the power, cooling and building elements necessary to support data centre hardware. The data centre hardware infrastructure usually involves servers; storage subsystems; networking devices, like switches, routers and physical cabling; and dedicated network appliances, such as network firewalls (Kroenke  & Boyle 2015).

Systems Infrastructure includes; software, hardware, firmware, networks and Websites that is used by an organization to facilitate communication (Ajuwon, 2015). In this study systems infrastructure is taken to mean all the necessary systems facilities like the computers, internet, software, hardware, websites and networks (intra and extra connection) that are used by an organization to facilitate better performance.

User knowledge and skills is defined as the ability of an individual to have the required knowledge to operate the computer systems (Brabham & Guth, 2017). In this study user knowledge and skills mean the ability of the organizational employees and the clients to interact using computers, internet and all other online services, this will specifically be measured in terms of Computer literacy, User competence and Education level.

Competencies have been identified as motives, knowledge, skills, traits, and one’s self-image or self-concept (spencer, 1993).user competency in information systems have been found to be lacking in most organization, since different organizations across the globe have workers who have not been fully trained in Information systems hard ware like use of computer key board and they also lack the required knowledge in software.

According to Kaplan (2012) performance is a way an organization measures its achievement in line to its strategy and objectives. In this study, performance means the ability of an organization to achieve its targets. In this study, performance is a dependent variable and it has been interpreted to represent financial performance, customer satisfaction and growth.

According to Kaplan, (2015) performance of the organization is measured in different dynamics mainly through the ability of the organization to achieve its strategic goals and visions. The balanced Scorecard is set to align business activities to the vision and strategy of the business, improve internal and external communications, and monitor business performance against strategic goals.

In this study, performance is measured in three key dimensions; Financial performance; Financial performance of the organization involves the organizational ability to meet the shareholders’ expectation and perception.

When the business is able to meet the shareholders’ expectation and perception we say the organization has performed well.

Customer satisfaction is defined as a result of comparison between what one customer expects about services provided by a service provider and what customer receives as actual services by a service provider, (carvanna,2003).

Customer satisfaction is customer evaluation of service provider whether it has met their needs and expectations (zeithaml & bitner 1998). Anderson & fornnel , (1995) suggested they were two concepts of customer satisfaction.

In this study, the growth of the organization is measured by its ability to meet its targets and exceed them, if the organization is able to meet its targets it has growth while if it fails to meet its target we say it’s not growing.

Growth of an organization is usually expanded into three sub categories that is to say; to make profits to continue in existence (survival). Growth is the ultimate measure of success of the business. Without growth then obviously there will be no fulfilment of other objectives.

1.2.4 Contextual Background

This study sets out to investigate the effect of Information systems on performance of government agencies at Uganda Revenue Authority. To meet the main objective of Uganda Revenue Authority, it sets monthly and yearly revenue collection targets to its employees. These targets are a result of a strict enforcement of carrying out URA business by employees through emphasizing strict verification by URA staff on implementing Information systems like E-TIN registration, e-payments, e-taxation, e-registration and e-motor vehicle registration (Turyakira, 2011).

Table below showing the deficits and target of Uganda revenue

Source: URA Report (2017).

Uganda revenue authority adopted Information systems to enable it in the management of the revenue collection however it has been facing deficits in its collection as indicated in the table above. Uganda Revenue Authority has employed Information systems in the collection of taxes to ensure that there is compliance among the tax payers because of the user friendly systems like E-registration, e-taxation, e-Tin registration, and e-payments to reduce on the collection deficits (Kabafuzaki, 2010).

Uganda revenue authority has continued to receive budget deficits which has been shown by the financial years 2015/2016 and 2016/2017. Uganda revenue authority has accumulated total deficits of 862 billion Ugandan shilling from 2015 to 2017 despite implementing information systems for the last five years.

1.3Problem statement

Kangave et al.,(2016) Information systems in URA was adopted in 2003 into the  domestic taxes department to increase revenue collection, improve quality of administration, reduce costs of compliance and provide services to the tax payers all the time from anywhere.

Despite the adoption of information systems like the ASYCUDA World by URA in 2010 with an aim of enhancing better customer service, improve on revenue collection to minimize deficits, enhance organizational performance, URA is still faced with numerous challenges like poor customers’ service, deficit in revenue collection and low productivity of the internal staff which has led to poor performance of the organization. Gaalya (2017) further reports that poor revenue collection has led to the failure by Uganda revenue authority in meeting the revenue collection target as shown by the increased deficits. In 2016/17, URA collected Shs12.7 trillion about 14 per cent of Gross Domestic Product against a target of Shs13.1 trillion, more to that URA also made revenue loss of Shs404billion in the financial year 2015/2016and a deficit of 2.6 trillion in financial year 2017/2018, in addition to the above, the ASYCUDA world has been reported to be complicated by the users therefore with the rising deficits in revenue collections departments at URA, the organization may fail to hit its revenue target in the coming financial years leading to a total organizational failure as whole. These challenges faced by URA therefore warrants examining the effect of information systems on performance of government agencies in Uganda with specific reference to Uganda Revenue Authority.

1.4Purpose of the study

The study seeks to establish the effect of Information systems on performance of URA.

1.5Objectives of the study

1. To assess the effect of information systems software on performance of URA.
2. To establish the effect of systems infrastructure on performance of URA.

• To examine the influence of user knowledge and skills on performance of URA.

1.6Research questions

1. What is the effect of information systems software on performance of URA?
2. What is the effect of systems infrastructure on performance of URA?

• What is the influence of user knowledge and skills on performance of URA?

1.7Hypotheses

H₁ Information systems software affects performance of government agencies in Uganda.

H₂There is a positive effect of system infrastructure on performance of government agencies in Uganda.

H₃User knowledge and skills does not affect performance of government agencies in Uganda.

1.8Conceptual framework

Information systems have become the centre of all developments in any economy. It has thus become inevitable to embrace computer use in any work. The government of Uganda designed a strategy aiming at changing the operational design and culture of the public sector to better improve on performance of its agencies.

Information system: The implementation of any information system requires advance technology infrastructure like for web based application that requires dedicated server and user friendly web interface. Below presented is the conceptual framework showing how information system relates to performance of government agencies.

Independent Variable                                                 Dependent Variable

                        Information systems                         Performance                                                   

Figure 1: conceptual framework

Source: Kaplan (2012)

According to the figure illustration above, information systems is the independent variable influencing organizational performance. Information system is looked at in aspects of systems software, the infrastructure used, and User knowledge and skills which mainly relates to the competence of the employees in an organization to improve on performance.

Kaplan (2012) in the industrial age, enterprises used to evaluate their performance on financial scores only. However, in the modern error with adoption of Information systems performance now is measured in terms of growth, customer satisfaction and financial performance.

1.9 Significance of the study

The study will enable future scholars to have information regarding the effect of systems software on performance of government agencies.

The study may also provide more literature to academicians on the effect of systems infrastructure on performance of government agencies.

The study may also enable policy makers to have information on how to finance Information system to enable better performance.

The findings of the study may also further enable the policy makers to have information on how to train the employees to enable them provide better performance of government agencies.

The study may also enable the policy makers to understand the different ways of enhancing better performance of government agencies.

1.10     Justification of the study

The study should be carried out because of the following reasons. In spite of the benefits of Information systems like; increased transparency, improved communication and access to information for citizens, digital diffusion of information is often achieved at high cost by government agencies. Ugandan government also adopted Information systems practices with the view of enhancing better organizational performance in its key departments; however, the government agencies in Uganda have experienced numerous challenges of poor performance.

This therefore has prompted the researcher to investigate into the effect of information systems on performance of government agencies.

1.11 Scope of the study

This section includes the geographical, time and subject/ content scope.

1.11.1 Content scope

The study will concentrate on two variables that are e-government and performance of government agencies. It will further expound on the role played by financial support, ICT infrastructure and user knowledge and skills. The performance of government agency has the dimensions of; financial performance, which is measured in terms of Shareholders expectation and Shareholder perception while Customer satisfaction is also measured in terms of Customer perception, Customer expectation and Customer interaction and lastly Growth will include;

Exceeding targets and Achieving targets.

1.11.2 The geographical scope

The study shall be carried out from Uganda revenue authority (URA). URA is one of the subsections under the Ministry of finance, Uganda revenue authority is located at plot 95 Kampala road, Nakawa Industrial Area, Kampala, Uganda.URA is found in Nakawa Division of the city of Kampala, approximately 6.5 kilometres (4 miles), by road, east of the city centre, off of the Kampala-Jinja Highway.

1.11.3 Time scope

The period of data to be considered from Uganda Revenue Authoritywill be from 2010 to 2018; this is because, during thisperiod, Uganda Revenue Authority adopted Information systems like ASYCUDA world to enhance better performance in revenue collection (Sanya, 2015, 2nd November).

1.12 Operational definition of key terms

Information systems: The use of technology to support government programs, enhancement of citizens’ engagement and provision of government services to the citizens in a timely, efficiently and at low cost.

Performance: This is the ability of an organization to efficiently utilize the resources at its disposal for maximum output.

CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Introduction

The study aims at investigating the effect of information systems on performance of government agencies in Uganda. This chapter presents theoretical and review of literature by objective relevant to the variables of study, and summary of literature review, indicating the lessons learnt and the gap the study is trying to fill. Literature review also discusses various authors that have carried out studies in the subject of the effect of information systems on performance of government agencies in order to enable the researcher appreciate what they have found out as well as the methodology used. Review of the literature will help in clarifying the research problem and ultimately answering the research problem.

2.2Theoretical review

This study will be guided by Diffusion of Innovation theory to establish the effect of information systems on performance of government agencies. The diffusion of innovation theory states that diffusion is governed by four main interacting elements, the innovation itself, communication channels, time and social systems. These four components, explain the process of change as determined by individuals and the whole organization, (Deligiannaki & Ali, 2011).

Using this theory, the innovation of information systems at URA are numerous, these include; adoption of modern website systems and the use of software in most of its operations. URA adopted these innovations to enable the organization to eliminate the key challenges faced by the organization.  Diffusion assumes that the propensity to adopt an innovation is primarily a function of the availability of information. The information systems at URA has been adopted to enhance better performance.

2.3The effect of information systems software on performance of URA

Information systems soft ware covers vast areas of technologies such as mobile and wireless technology, telecommunications, software development, security, Intelligent systems etc. Information system has had a huge impact on industries, the community in general and our daily lives. Information systems software can be applied to many fields. One of the emerging applications in recent years is in most of the organizations to enhance better performance (Kwok Hung Lau & Haibo Huang 2012). Information systems software is fast becoming one of the main drivers of change, posing new strategic challenges (Lee & Kim, 2016). The business environment today has been undergoing unprecedented change and many companies are seeking new ways to stand out from the competition by sustaining their competitive advantage. In today’s highly competitive global marketplace, the pressure on organization is to find new ways of creating and delivering value to customers in growing stronger.

Technology can be thought of as the application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes. From the invention of the wheel to the harnessing of electricity for artificial lighting, technology is a part of our lives in so many ways that we tend to take it for granted (Laudon  & Laudon, 2016).

Pearlson, Saunders, & Galletta, (2016) emphasizes that the need for information systems development cannot be understood unless one also understands the use of software in the organization and unless the software can be applied to the organization to enhance its better performance and enable the organization achieve better performance.

The integration of information technology (IT) and business processes has irrevocably changed the way in which modern organisations operate. The majority of medium-to-large organisations invest significant amounts of time, money and effort on information systems (IS); which combine hardware, software and networking capacity to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of their business processes (Grant  & Meadows, 2016). In some circumstances the IS/IT that supports a business process becomes so integral that it can be very difficult to differentiate between them. The way in which organisational accounting processes have become embedded and reliant upon accounting information systems (AIS) is an apt example of this phenomenon.

Information systems software works hand in hand with the hardware to enable the organization be in position to achieve its goals and objectives. Computers, keyboards, disk drives, iPads, and flash drives are all examples of information systems hardware (Pinedo, 2016).

Software is not tangible it cannot be touched. When programmers create software programs, what they are really doing is simply typing the list of the organization’s instructions that tell the hardware what to do. There are several categories of software, with the two main categories being operating-system software, which makes the hardware usable, and application software, which does something useful. Examples of operating systems include Microsoft Windows on a personal computer and Google’s Android on a mobile phone. Examples of application software are Microsoft Excel and Angry Birds (Chen et al., 2016).

According to Huang et al., (2013), Governments around the world are under the pressure from citizens and business to be more open and transparent in managing public funds, deliver quality public services as per needs of citizens therefore, in the last quarter of 2017, the world wide expenditure on software development was 480 billion dollars (Hughes et al., 2017).This expenditure was in information systems software to enable better service delivery and improve on general public sector performance.

Clearly, Internet and intranet technology has practical integrative applications for organizations. In addition to the practical use of IT as an integrative mechanism, the management of technology also has increased. Andrade & Doolin (2016) makes a strong argument that companies use IT to structure organizations. In addition, he argues that he and many others consider the management of IT as the biggest challenge. The research from this thesis addresses both of these two issues; namely, the use of IT for integration and the implications associated with the management of information technology itself.

According to Rana et al., (2017) information systems initiatives in India was first started in 1990 with a minimal financial investment into National Informatics Centre to enable computerization of operations and automation of the pension fund. This was to eliminate the several challenges with the mismanagement and poor record keeping of the files of the pensioners.

Krecie (2016) reports that the government of Philippines invests around 8-10% of its Gdp on Information systems to enable integrating the operations of government agencies and also on improving transparency in public sector. These financial investments in information systems by different public sector organizations across the globe, is a manifestation of the long-term benefits of the service in enhancing better organizational performance.

Aisara & Pather (2011), In line with world trends, the government of South Africa has over the last decade, recognized the importance of information and communications technology (ICT) and more recently Information systems in improving the standards of service quality and increasing the overall efficiencies of government. Asa result, the government has provided systems software to different public institution amounting to over R14 billion during2015/2016 financial year.

Abdullahi(2014),reports that the government of Nigeria in an effort to eliminate inefficiencies in service delivery and improve general performance, the government invested 32 billion dollars in 2015 to improve on the network systems and elimination of inefficiencies in the Information systems performance.

Karim, 2015 reports that Nigeria has some of the worst public sector delivery systems in the world characterised by corruption and delays in delivery of public services.

2.4The Information Systems infrastructure on organizational performance

Wachira(2015) the use of computer systems in the organization improves performance in a number of ways. Firstly, the computers improve the level of coordination between different departments in a public sector, this has enabled the government across the globe to improve on public service delivery effectiveness and general better organizational performance of the government agencies.

Wachira  (2015) further contends that Information systems infrastructure also improves on speed and reliability of organizational transfer and processing of information among members in the organization, this helps the different departments in the organization to send and receive information in a short time which leads to improved performance and better competitive strength of the organization. There is a delay of government services in reaching the people that need it in Ethiopia; some of the departments that people delays in accessing services include the pension (Lavers & Hickey, 2016).

The use of internet services as an effective Information systems infrastructure in Nigeria has been adopted by the government to eliminate unnecessary government costs incurred as a result of paper work and enhance performance of public sector agencies in the country (Ukachi, 2015).

Lavers  & Hickey  (2016) indicates that Nigerian government agencies have been blamed for poor response to the needs of the citizens and high costs of the paper work involved in the government administration.

Rotich , (2015) also believes that the adoption of computers  in the organization is to provide better and an effective communication between different departments in the organization and also between the organization and the outside world. The government’s effort to use computers in the monitoring of public agencies is to ensure that business between the government and the citizens is effective and fast.

Wilson et al., (2015) states that the use of websites is to enable long-term relationship between the organization and the customers, he further asserts that websites is where customers keep checking on the major changes in the organizational products. The public sector websites provide information to the customers about the products the organization has.

Government across Sub-Saharan Africa have acquired advanced software in key government agencies like Taxation and water management systems, this is to enable government manage public utilities better.

Paul & Pascale(2013) the government of Ghana was able to realize an increase in revenue collection due to the use of advanced software and internet services, using this system, the public could pay for their taxes online. With the use of systems infrastructural facilities, Ghana was able to realize an increase in revenue collection by 22% in 2017 this was estimated at GH¢13.2 billion against the target of GH¢12.8 billion.

Ronald & Nazarius (2011) Uganda Revenue Authority has been experiencing a failure to meet its targets which has been a challenge to the organizational top management despite the adoption of ASYCUDA world software. Ghmire, (2014) indicates that taxation software enhances efficiency in revenue collection and reduces costs.

2.5 Influence of user knowledge and skills on organizational performance.

Knowledge has become one of the most highly valued commodities in the modern economy. Further, knowledge is considered the principal tool of competitiveness and innovation in the composition of commodity chain to the broader processes of regional and national economic development (Ajuwon, 2015). The new paradigm is that, within the organization, knowledge must be shared in order for it to grow thus sharing knowledge among its management and staff grows stronger and becomes more competitive (Tarhini et al., 2015).

Some of the most significant changes are the growing importance of knowledge as a catalyst of economic growth within the global economy, the revolution of information and communication technology (ICT), the integration of the global labour market and worldwide socio-political transformations (Lwoga et al., 2016).

Lwoga et al., (2016) further notes that access to and production of knowledge are essential prerequisite for participation in the global economy; this is witnessed by the fact that information and communication technologies have significantly increased the speed of production, use and distribution of knowledge, thus making a country’s economic and social wellbeing dependant on how quickly it can adjust its capacity to share and generate knowledge.

Komba et al., (2016) transformations brought to different firms as a result of information systems offer many potential opportunities for both developed and developing nations. However, on the negative side, they also pose serious threats, and especially for developing nations. There is ample evidence that processes of globalization and the ascent of Manuel Castell’s ‘Information Society’ have given rise to new problems, such as the growing knowledge gap and digital divide between the information rich and the information poor among and within nations.

According to Meeker, (2015) the concept of Knowledge Management (KM) has attracted the attention of researchers over the last decade since it is considered an important tool to achieve innovation and sustainable competitive advantages. Takieddine & Sun (2015) noted that in highly unstable economies the only sure source of lasting competitive advantage is knowledge.  Bayero, (2015) notes that firms that adopt knowledge management practices perform better than competing firms that do not, on the same line of thought, Ukachi, (2015) further asserts that knowledge management practices have been implemented in different industries both service and manufacturing to enhance better performance and increased output.

The adoption of computers in education is not a new phenomenon, Ahmadi (2013) asserts that in the 1970’s, its promoters claimed that it would transform and save education.

According to Ludeman & Erlanson, (2013) the late 1980’s saw a growing shift towards computer integration which emphasized the use of computers in most of the government’s daily work like the preparation of reports, accountability and monitoring of government projects which changed from manual to automated.

The 1990‟s saw a heightened focus on increasing the use of computer technology in Education, Health and defence departments of most governments across the globe. Busagala (2013) notes that there is growing attention and pressure to implement technology in education,one of the most significant features of the technological or digital era of much relevance to education is the Internet.

2.6Summary of related literature

The literature indicates that systems software has different roles on the effectiveness of Information systems on performance of a government agency. Some of the roles include ensuring that there is transparency in management of public funds.

The use of Information systems also enables the government to have better ways of record keeping, achieve improved standards of service quality and increase the overall efficiencies of government.

The study indicates that Information systems infrastructure has an influence on performance of government agencies like the use of computer systems in the organization improves performance. Internet services as an effective systems infrastructure enables the government to eliminate unnecessary government costs incurred as a result of paper work and enhance performance of public sector agencies in the country.

The adoption of computers in the organization is to provide better and an effective communication between different departments in the organization and also between the organization and the outside world.

The literature indicates that user knowledge and skills have an influence on organizational performance since knowledge is believed to be the principal tool of competitiveness which enhances innovation in the organization.

The literature does not indicate how Information system influences financial performance in an organization since it’s difficult to measure performance. most organization have different ways of measuring performance because of their different goals for example profit making organization may assume that profitability is the key determinant of performance while government organization which are not profit making may use another parameter in determining performance, in addition organization with long term ambition prefer to use customer growth as a measure of performance.

CHAPTER THREE

METHODOLOGY

3.1 Introduction

The study aims at investigating the effect of Information systems on performance of government agencies in Uganda. This section presents the research methods that will be used to carry out the study. It covers the research design, Area of study, target population, sample design, sample size, research instrument, measurement of variables, Data Collection Procedure, data analysis and anticipated problems of the study

3.2 Research Design

The study will adopt a cross-sectional survey research design because of the nature of the variables that will be at hand; to produce data required for quantitative and qualitative analysis and to allow simultaneous description of views, perceptions and opinions at any single point in time (White, 2000). The study also shall use qualitative and quantitative methodologies for data analysis. Quantitative and qualitative methodologies shall be used in examining the effect of Information systems on performance of government agencies. Quantitative research consists of those studies in which the data concerned can be analysed in terms of numbers while qualitative describes events, persons and so forth scientifically without the use of numerical data. Quantitative research is based more directly on its original plans and its results are more readily analysed and interpreted. Qualitative research is more open and responsive to its subject. (Christina Hughes, 2006).

3.3 Study Population

Study population is defined as the entire group of people that a researcher wishes to investigate (Sekaran, 2003). The entity comprises of 239 employees, 1 Executive Director, 12 Management staff, 40 Division Heads, 5 Regional Heads, and 181 staff members at URA whose duties influence the effect of Information systems on performance of government agencies.

3.4 Determination of the sample size

Mugenda and Mugenda (2003), argue that it is impossible to study the whole targeted population and therefore the researcher will take a sample of the population. A sample is a subset of the population that comprises members selected from the population. Using Krejcie and Morgan’s (1970) table for sample size determination approach, a sample size of 181 respondents will be selected from the total population of 239 employees and 100 prominent tax payers.

Table 1: Population, Sample size and Sampling technique

Source: URA Employee List, (2013)

3.5 Sampling techniques and procedure

Purposive sampling, also known as judgmental, selective or subjective sampling, is a type of non-probability sampling technique where the researcher chooses a sample based on what they think in other words they use their personal judgement (Palys, 2008). The study will use Purposive sampling technique because it saves time and also enables the researcher to get information from the right people who have knowledge and skills regarding the subject topic. This technique will be used in selecting, Executive Director, Managers, Division Heads, and Regional members, the researcher will use this technique because these respondents hold enough knowledge and skills regarding the study topic.

The researcher will use simple random sampling technique, According to Amin, (2010) a simple random sample is a subset of individuals chosen from a larger set (a population). Each individual is chosen randomly and entirely by chance, such that each individual has the same probability of being chosen at any stage during the sampling process, and each subset of individuals has the same probability of being chosen for the sample. The technique will be used to select from the other staff members.

3.6 Data collection methods

The section presents data collection methods which include questionnaire survey, interview and documentary review.

3.6.1    Questionnaire Survey

Questionnaire Survey method will be used to obtain the opinion of the respondents regarding the topic under study, according to (Onen & onen, 2013) states that questionnaires are important in research because the respondents are given time to think and they don’t feel intimidated. Questionnaire gives the respondents ample time to respond to the questions when ready and they can be kept for future references. This method will be deployed to capture information from Staff Members, Regional Heads, and Division Heads.

3.6.2    Interview

Face-to-face interview is a data collection method when the interviewer directly communicates with the respondent in accordance with the prepared questionnaire (Polak  & Green, 2015).

This method enables to acquire factual information, consumer evaluations, attitudes, preferences and other information coming out during the conversation with the respondent. Thus, face-to-face interview method ensures the quality of the obtained data and increases the response rate.

Interviews will be used because they fetch a variety of ideas needed for the study and give a deeper understanding of the topic. The method will be used to generate information from Managers and the Executive Director.

3.6.3    Documentary review

This will be used to supplement the data that will be acquired from the interviews and questionnaires. The researcher intends to analyse the documents and publications relating to the study topic. Documents that are expected to be reviewed include URA reports, Journals, and Newspapers.

3.7 Data collection instruments

For each deployed data collection method, there is a corresponding data collection instrument that will be used. The study will use Questionnaire Guides, Interview Guide and Document review checklist as described in the sub-sections below.

3.7.1    Self-administered Questionnaire

The questionnaire shall be designed in a manner that motivates respondents with simple structured questions with the option of providing any addition information to the structured questionnaire as an option to obtain relevant data from them. The questionnaire is structured with both close-ended and open-ended questions. It has aLikert scale 1-5 indicating the level of a respondents’ agreement or disagreement, where 1 represents Strongly Disagree and 5 Strongly Agree.The questionnaire is attached in Appendix I.

3.7.2    Interview Guide

The researcher intends to use an interview guide to collect data in order to find out the vivid picture of the participants’ perspective of the topic. Interviews are an effective qualitative method for getting people to talk about their feelings, opinions and experiences. They are also an opportunity for us to gain insight into how people interpret effect of Information systems on performance of government agencies. The views of the respondents will be a personal reflection of their personal experience relating to the study topic. Appendix II presents the interview guide.

3.7.3    Document Review Checklist

The researcher will use this instrument as attached in Appendix III, in order to capture secondary data and first-hand   information relevant to the study. These documents will help the researcher by revealing the level of performance of government agencies through a review of the analysis reports, journals, and Newspapers.

3.8 Data quality control of instruments

The data collection tools shall be pre-tested on a smaller number of respondents from each category of the population to ensure that the questions are accurate.

3.8.1 Validity

Validityis defined as the extent to which results can be accurately interpreted and generalized to other populations (Oso & Onen, 2008).

Validity is the extent to which an instrument like an interview guide or questionnaire measures the intention of the researcher.

Validity will be tested using content validity index which involves judges scoring the relevancy of the questions in the instruments in relation to the study variables.

The formula for Content Validity Index will be

CVI =

Where CVI = content validity

n= number of items indicated relevant.

N = total no. of items in the instrument

The researcher will give the instruments to the two experts who will make an assessment of whether what the researcher is trying to bring out actually does come out. The instrument will then be tried out on selected individuals of the same characteristics as those that will be in the study to assist in identifying deficiencies in the instruments such as insufficient space to write responses, wrong numbering, vague questions, (Mugenda &Mugenda, 1999).The variables should have a CVI of above 0.70 or 70% as the recommended value for the instruments to be considered relevant (Amin, 2005).The researcher will analyse the data collected and where need arises, the instrument will be re-adjusted and re-design to improve reliability and validity. To improve face validity a pilot study will be carried out at URA.

3.8.2 Reliability

Crobach’s coefficient alpha (a) as recommended by Amin, (2005, P.302) will be used to test the reliability of the research instrument. The instrument is deemed reliable if reliable of 0.7 and above is obtained and therefore, it will be adopted for use in the data collection.

Formula for reliability is

=       ( )

Where  = alpha reliability co efficiency.

K=Number of items included in the questionnaire

= sum of variance of individual items

= variance of all items in the instrument.

To ensure credibility and trust worthiness of qualitative data the researcher will ensure that only the officials who are employees of URA will be interviewed.

The coefficient ranges between a=0.00 for no reliability, a =1.00 for perfect reliability. The closer alpha gets to 1.0 the better. If the study findings result to Cronbanch’s Alpha of 0.7 and above, this will signify that research instrument is good enough for the study. According to Amin (2005), all the measurements in the instrument that show adequate levels of internal consistency of cronbach’s alpha of 0.7 and above are accepted as reliable.

3.9 Procedure of data collection

The researcher will obtain an introductory letter from Uganda management institute to seek permission and enable easy access of information by the researcher from URA, after the permission is granted from URA, the researcher will go ahead and administer questionnaires and interview guides to the selected respondents however the consent of the respondents will be sought before being given questionnaire and the respondents will be informed that the study is strictly for academic purposes.

3.10 Data analysis

Data analysis will involve the use of both quantitative and qualitative techniques.

3.10.1  Quantitative Data Analysis

Data processing will be done by entering the data into a statistics package for social sciences (SPSS) in line with the research questions. Data analysis will be done by also using this statistics package for social sciences (SPSS) to formulate frequency tables where the mean, variance and standard deviation will be obtained.

Under quantitative analysis, process will include editing, classification, coding and presentation. Data will be summarized in frequency tables, percentage; data will be analysed with the use of statistical package for social scientist (SPSS). Quantitative data will be collected through structure questionnaires and it will be cantered into a computer, tabulated and analysed.

Spearman’s correlation coefficient and regression analysis is recommended by Amin (2005, P.378) will be used during data analysis in order to test the strength, degree and direction of the effect of Information systems on performance of government agencies. The formula will be used for this study because it is compatible with SPSS program in addition to being appreciated in analysing data under which the data will be arranged.

3.11Measurements of variables

A five point Likert ordinal scales ranging from; strongly agree which shall be assigned 5, strongly Agree, 4 agree, Not Sure assigned 3, Disagree allocated 2 and strongly disagree allotted 1 to obtain responses on the variables. The Likert ordinal scale has been used by numerous scholars who have conducted similar studies such as Bowling, (1997).

The structured questions will be measured using the following variables;

• Information systems software
• Information systems infrastructure
• User knowledge and skills

3.12Ethical considerations

The researcher will ensure that before giving questionnaires to the respondents their consent will be sought and when they accept to participate in the studythey will be given questionnaires.

Confidentiality of the respondents ‘information will be assured and the researcher will also inform them that the study is meantstrictly for academic purposes and therefore they should not fear giving information.

Only respondents who are selected will be given questionnaires and only those meant to be interviewed will be interviewed.

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APPENDICES

APPENDIX 1: QUESTIONNAIRE FOR RESPONDENTS

I am a student of Uganda Management Institute pursuing a Masters degree in public administration and management.

I am conducting a study on “the effect of information systems on performance of government agencies”, a case of Uganda Revenue Authority. This questionnaire has been designed purposely for data collection on E-government and performance. You have been carefully identified as a potential person who can provide useful and reliable data that will help policy makers and implementers to improve on “information systems on performance of government agencies”, a case of Uganda Revenue Authority. The information generated will be handled with utmost confidentiality and will be used for academic purposes.

Thank you in advance for your co-operation by giving your valuable time and effort to fill the questionnaire.

Yours faithfully,

Julie Kalirebwami

 (STUDENT)       

Dear Respondent,

I am a student of Uganda Management Institute pursuing a Masters degree in public administration and management.

This questionnaire has been designed purposely for data collection on information systems and performance of government agencies. You have been carefully identified as a potential person who can provide useful and reliable data that will help policy makers and implementers to improve on Information systems on performance of Uganda Revenue Authority. The information generated will be handled with utmost confidentiality and will be used for academic purposes.

Julie Kalirebwami

Section A:    Back ground information of the respondent

Please tick the most appropriate answer in the corresponding box

1. Gender : a)Male                    b)Female

2. Age: a) 20-30 years                    b) 31-40 years                c) 41+ years and above
3. What is your highest level of education?
4. Primary Level b) “O” level           c) Certificate            d) Diploma Level
5. e) Degree Level              f) Masters Degree            g) Post Graduate Diploma
6. How long have you worked for the URA?
7. a) Less than 1 year          b) 1-2 years              c) 3-5 years          d) 6+ years
8. What is your designation in URA?
9. a) Accounting                    b) Manager
10. c) Division Head d) staff member

Section B:       Systems software

Please, use the scale below to answer the questions that follow by ticking the number that corresponds to your opinion.

1. Systems software

1. Systems infrastructure

III. User knowledge and skills

1. Performance of government agencies

APPENDIX II: Interview guide

The effect of e-government on performance of government agencies

1. Systems software

• How often do clients visit the website?
• How easy is it to use the website of URA?

2. Systems infrastructure

• How often does URA carry out maintenance on its Internet connectivity?
• How does URA ensure that all employees have computers and laptops?
• How stable is the internet connection of URA for both employees and customers to enable them access the services?

3. User knowledge and skills

• How easy is it for URA customers to use its online services?
• How conversant are URA employees with computer and internet operations?
• What education level is required for a customer to independently access URA online services?

4. Financial performance

• How satisfied are URA top management with the current financial performance?
• How do the key stake holders perceive the current financial performance of URA?

5. Customer satisfaction

• How do customers perceive URA online taxation services?
• What are the complaints that customers have with URA online taxation services?
• How does URA interact with its customers frequently?

6. Growth

• How has the use of internet and computer services enabled URA to achieve its targets?
• What impact has URA realised as a result of the use of computers and internet services?

APPENDIX III: Document Review Checklist

1. System software

-Availability of funds for online services at URA.

-Amount of funds invested at URA for internet services

1. Systems infrastructure

– The level of internet connection at URA?

-computer usage at URA.

-Intra-net connection at URA.

1. User knowledge and skills.

– Computer literacy among employees of URA?

– User competence in use of computers?

– Educational level of employees?

1. Financial performance.

– Targets of revenue collections set by URA.- The level of deficit faced by URA.

1. e) Customer Satisfaction

-Complaints of URA online services by the clients.

-clients’ perception of URA online services.

1. f) Growth

– Documents related to URA targets

-Revenue collections of URA

-Budget allocations of URA.