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Trump orders end of US government cheques in digital disbursements overhaul
US president Donald Trump has signed executive orders to “modernise how the government handles money” and centralise a “fragmented” federal disbursements bureaucracy to tackle fraud. The first executive order mandates that, with effect from 30 September, the federal government “will cease issuing paper checks for all disbursements, including intragovernmental payments, benefits, vendor payments and tax…
Digital benefit payments: Embracing the future with a human touch
One of the most important roles of governments is to provide benefits payments for their most vulnerable citizens. A recent Global Government Forum webinar with knowledge partner Visa looked at how technology can make payments systems more inclusive and accessible. The expert panellists noted that while digitalisation offers many benefits for both governments and…
Interview: why e-payments are a ‘game changer’ for digital public services in Italy
PagoPA is best known in Italy for its payments platform but the state-owned organisation also plays a wider role in driving digital public services. CEO Alessandro Moricca speaks to Ian Hall. Italy is doing things differently when it comes to encouraging the adoption of digital payments and digital public services more broadly. Leading the charge…
Digitalization of public procurement and government commercial payments
Public procurement is a vital part of any nation’s economy, serving key policy goals and representing around 13% to 20% of GDP on average.* Because of its scale and strategic role, government procurement can present both valuable opportunities and unique challenges. What are public procurement and government commercial payments? Public procurement is the purchasing of…
Reset, Rebuild, Recover – leveraging digital technologies to respond to the social and economic impact of COVID-19
Across the world, the economic stimulus response to COVID-19 far outsize those to the 2008 financial crisis – 33 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) versus 3.5 percent of GDP in Germany – and the U.S. Federal Reserve’s balance sheet grew as much in six months as over the prior 12 years. The pandemic has…
HMRC explores the potential of open banking to ‘streamline’ tax
The UK’s HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) is investigating how it can use small businesses’ and self-employed individuals’ real-time financial transaction data, obtained with their permission through open banking, to calculate and collect tax. The department issued a request for information (RFI) on “tax-compliant banking products” last week. This is the latest signal that the…
Singapore grants non-banks access to e-payments infrastructure
Singapore’s central bank is opening up its retail payments infrastructure to non-banks from February 2021 to simplify e-payments for consumers and businesses. The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) announced on Monday that non-bank financial institutions (NFIs) licenced as “major payment institutions” under Singapore’s Payment Services Act will be eligible. This means they have passed checks in areas…
Tallinn tales: Estonia’s role in developing the digital euro
Rainer Olt is leading research on digital currency technology for Estonia’s central bank. In an interview with Ian Hall, he talks blockchain, privacy and instant payments Estonia boasts a well-forged reputation both as an e-government pioneer and for punching above its weight in the European Union (EU). So recent news that its central bank Eesti Pank is supporting…
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Discover independent research reports, surveys and in-depth studies from Global Government Forum and knowledge partners, exploring the most important issues facing governments and the public sector. Our research provides practical insights and evidence-based recommendations for senior civil servants, policymakers and public sector leaders. Our reports combine exclusive survey data, expert analysis and interviews with government leaders from around the world to help public sector organisations improve performance, inform policy and deliver better outcomes for citizens.
Empowering Public Servants to Make Confident, Informed Decisions with Data and AI
Governments around the world are working hard to extract – and act upon – the insights held in their vast data stores, and to embrace AI and the promise it holds for innovation and transformation. At the same time, economic pressures and constrained budgets are compelling public servants to do more with fewer resources, while governments are called to respond quickly and effectively to complex challenges.
Against this backdrop, data and AI can help those working in government both to streamline their workflows and make fast, informed decisions. This in turn drives efficiency and can unlock productivity gains – and ultimately lead to improved performance and better services for citizens.
Global Government Forum surveyed over 600 civil servants worldwide to understand how data and AI are being used in government decision-making and where there are further challenges and opportunities.
Read this report for insight into how governments are using data and AI in decision-making today and the potential for the future; the major challenges to using data and AI in decision-making and how to overcome them; and how AI agents can be used in decision-making.
The report includes examples of data and AI in decision-making from countries including the UK, Ireland, Australia, Canada, Singapore, the US, and more.
(Published September 2025)
Making Government Work: Five Pillars of a Modern, Effective Civil Service
Around the world, governments are dealing with substantial challenges – from economic stagnation to the transition to net zero, military conflicts and cyber threats. Governments are also grappling with shifting geopolitics and the rise of populism – and all of these factors are set against the emergence of new technologies, including generative AI, which have the potential to fundamentally transform every aspect of society, but which also pose huge ethical, security and regulatory questions for the public sector.
The Making Government Work: Five pillars of a modern, effective civil service report was undertaken to help identify the key characteristics needed in a modern public service, with priorities ranging across leadership, digital service delivery, workforce development, cross-departmental integration, and citizen trust.
This report has been covered by publications around the world including the Financial Times, BBC Radio 4’s PM programme, Ottawa Citizen, Fed Manager, the Mandarin and the i newspaper.
(Published August 2024)
The Future of the Finance Ministry
From setting tax rates and financial regulations that create the ground rules for national economies, to allocating – and tracking – spending for public services, finance ministries occupy an essential role at the centre of government. Geopolitical crises have reinforced the importance of finance ministries, as they tackle both immediate shocks and long-term trends such as ageing populations, the digital transition, and the impact of moves to net zero.
Against this backdrop, this global research explores what the future finance ministry looks like and how to prepare for it.
Based on interviews with 10 senior leaders from finance ministries – led by John McCarthy, chief economist in Ireland’s Department of Finance, working with Ian Hall, editor, Global Government Finance, and Richard Johnstone, executive editor, Global Government Forum – the study identifies four key themes: the evolving role of the finance ministry in response to uncertainty; the shift to more flexible finance systems that support outcomes; digital transformation and the growth of AI; and the battle for talent and trust.
(Published May 2026)
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