1.

Historical background of digitization:

Bangladesh is an independent country since 1971. After its independence there are lots of Ministries and Governmental organizations have been set up to maintain its governmental activities. Earlier these Ministries and Governmental organizations performed their works manually. But when technology had been introduced, they had realized to provide website facilities to the people. So that, the public can easily get the required information from these Ministrys and Governmental organizations websites. The us e of information and communication technology has been playing a vital role in the 21st century due to globalization and the government is encouraged to adapting with the coming future. The democratic government has declared the Vision 2021 in the election manifesto, which targets establishment of a resourceful and modern country by 2021 through effective use of information and communication technology-a "Digital Bangladesh".

2. Brief profile of the website:

Website - www.moi.gov.bd Owner - Ministry of Information Copy right - 2009-2010 Ministry of Information Content type - text/html Language - English

The Ministry of Information has been playing a catalytic role in disseminating information to the people through print and electronic media. This Ministry transacts its business through some next step agencies like Press Information Department (PID), Bangladesh Betar, Bangladesh Television (BTV), Department of Mass Communication (DMC), Department of Films & Publications (DFP), Bangladesh Film Archive (BFA), Press Institute of Bangladesh (PIB), National Institute of Mass Communication (NIMC), Bangladesh Sangbad Sanstha (BSS), Bangladesh Film Development Corporation (BFDC), Bangladesh Film Censor Board and Bangladesh Press Council. It has also conducted its extra-territorial activities through the press wings stationed in Washington DC, New York, London, New Delhi, Islamabad & Calcutta.

In this era of information technology having free flow of information, the Ministry of Information has a challenging role to play. As per allocation of business this Ministry has to perform the following chartered assignments:-

Audio-visual, pictorial and press coverage of all activities of the President, Prime Minister and Ministers both at home and abroad. Publicity policy-internal and external. Coordination of Publicity activities of the different Ministries/Divisions and Bangladesh Missions abroad. Press relations including journalists delegation and other media delegation. Preparation and release of communiqus, press notes, handouts, etc. Preservation and interpretation of the policies and activities of the Government of Bangladesh through press media. Advising Government through press; keeping Government informed of the main trends of public opinion as reflected in the press and liaison between Government and the press. Administration of Press and Publication Law. Administration of Radio and Television and all other matters relating to broadcasting through Bangladesh Betar & Bangladesh Television. Policy regarding government advertisement. Community listening Schemes. Preparation of Media lists. Compulsory screening of Films. Analysis and interpretation of public opinion as reflected in the national press. Sanctioning of Cinematograph films for exhibition Administration of Cinematograph Act: Cinematograph and Censorship. Liaison with International Organizations and matters relating to treaties and agreements with other countries.

3. Types of data provided in the website:

There are various information provided by this website through following departments, which are briefly described below, a) Press Information Department (PID): Press Information Department publicizes the policies and programs of the Government through communication media. It issues press notes, handouts, features, articles, photos, accreditation cards to media men and coordinates media coverage. PID has three regional information offices located at Chittagong, Khulna and Rajshahi by which the actions and policies of the Government are being informed instantly to the people and receives their reactions through the same channel of communication. Website is www.bdpressinform.org. b) Bangladesh Betar: Bangladesh Betar a public service broadcaster has been broadcasting 220 hours 25 minutes programme daily from its 11 regional stations, 5 units (Farm broadcasting , Commercial service, External service and Population service) using 27 transmitters. It also broadcasts its programme from six FM transmitters to educate, inform, entertain and motivate listeners. The types of the programme are song, drama, talk, interview, discussion, talk show, magazine, feature, jingle, spot, reporting, traffic reporting, composite programme, musical programme, answer to the letters, news, news commentary etc. External service of Bangladesh Betar broadcasts programme in six languages namely Bengali, English, Urdu, Hindi, Nepalese and Arabic. Every day the Central News Organization (CNO) of Bangladesh Betar transmits as many as 22 national news bulletins of various duration once every hours starting at 7.00 am in the morning till midnight. Website is www.betar.bd.org. c) Bangladesh Television (BTV): Bangladesh Television is a state-owned television channel which telecasts news and multidimensional programs aiming at presenting information, promoting values, ethics & culture and motivating people towards democracy and development activities. BTV has a satellite channel which covers Russia to the north, Australia to the south, Japan to the east and Cyprus to the west. It has two stations in Dhaka and Chittagong and fourteen sub-stations across the country. BTV's terrestrial transmission covers 95% geographical area of Bangladesh. It is not only an entertainment channel but also a public service broadcaster and is committed to the people for its overall activities.

d) Department of Mass Communication (DMC): The Department of Mass Communication was originally established in 1924 and it was reconstructed in the present shape in 1972. The main objective of the Department is to disseminate information on the policies, programmes and activities of the Government to the people through direct mass contact and inter-personal communication (IPC). It also carries problems & reactions of the people to the Government for formulation of appropriate policies. Website of DMC is www.masscom.gov.bd. e) Department of Films & Publications (DFP): The Department of Films & Publications makes films and publications to inspire the people for participation in development activities. It issues certificates for publication and registration of newspapers, periodicals and books. DFP supplies government advertisements among the media listed newspapers and periodicals. DFP produces documentary films on history and heritage. f) Bangladesh Film Archive (BFA): Bangladesh Film Archive preserves the cine-cultural heritage and history of the country. It has a collection of 2115 feature films, documentaries, news reels, short films, video tapes and DVDs. Website of BFA is www.bfa.gov.bd. g) Press Institute of Bangladesh (PIB): Press Institute of Bangladesh imparts training to journalists and of both electronic and print media at national and regional levels. Along with arranging regular foundation training for journalists, it organizes workshops, dialogues and seminars on gender, children and women, reproductive health, environment and on current issues like Bird Flu, HIV/AIDS etc. Website of PIB is www.pib.gov.bd. h) National Institute of Mass Communication (NIMC): National Institute of Mass Communication is the apex training center of the Ministry of Information which gives training to the Bangladesh Civil Service Information Cadre officers and other public information officials.

i)

Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS):

Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha carries out the responsibility of national news agency by securing news from and abroad and disseminating the same to the people of the country in general through the print and electronic media, both in Bangla and English. The Sangstha secures worldwide political, diplomatic, financial, economic, commercial, cultural and sports news from international news agencies. Website of BSS is www.bssnews.net. j) Bangladesh Film Development Corporation (BFDC): Bangladesh Film Development Corporation promotes the local film industry in producing quality films. It has studios, camera, dubbing, recording, processing and printing facilities for production of films. Website of BFDC is www.fdc.gov.bd/fdc. k) Bangladesh Film Censor Board (BFCB): Bangladesh Film Censor Board examines the locally produced films and all imported films for commercial purposes and non-commercial use. It also censors the films imported by the Foreign Missions through diplomatic channel. The Board acts as the registration authority of film clubs and societies and to regulate activities including granting permission for screening of films. Website of BFCB is www.fcbbd.org. l) Bangladesh Press Council (BPC):

Bangladesh Press Council is a quasi-judicial body, for the purpose of preserving the freedom of the press and maintaining and improving the standard for news papers and news agencies of Bangladesh.

4. Linkage with other ministries:

This website is not linked with any other ministries website. But, it is linked with other organizations and offices websites which are as follows; President's Office Prime Minister's Office Cabinet Division Bangladesh Govt. Forms List of Officials (RTI) Bangladesh Betar Bangladesh Television Press Information Department Department of Mass Communication Department of Films & Publications Bangladesh Film Development Corporation National Institute of Mass Communication Bangladesh Film Archive Bangladesh Film Censor Board Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha Press Institute of Bangladesh Bangladesh Press Council

5. Evaluation of information provided as per ministry:

There are several guidelines to evaluate the website. These are time, unit of measurement, caption and time series of data available. a. Time: The information of Information Ministry website is not updated. The information was published up to 2010. For example: list of the TV channels and FM Radio channels are updated up to 2010. A website should be regularly updated. b. Unit of measurement: There is financial information in this website. The unit of measurement is taka. c. Caption: There are many captions. Bus several are effective. Maximum caption are not well designed. A browser hardly gets information from the information ministry website. d. Time series of data available: The information of this website is not properly updated. The information is updated up to 2010.

6. SWOT analysis of the website (Strengths & Weaknesses):

Strengths: I. II. The home-page has a neat layout through the use of borders. On the top right corner of the website, there is the contact detail of the ministry which enables people to contact the authority when needed. III. The website is directly linked with other govt. websites of Prime Ministers office, Presidents office etc so that people can directly visit those websites from this website when needed. IV. Other next step agencies links like PID, DMC, BFA etc are given so that the visitor gets the information quickly. V. It provides audio- visual and press coverage of the President, Prime minister, and Minister both at home and abroad. VI. It keeps preservation and interpretation of the policies and activities of the Government of Bangladesh through press media. VII. It also provides coordination of publicity activities of the different ministries/Divisions and Bangladesh Missions abroad.

Weaknesses: I. II. III. Theres a large amount of text on the home-page which can be overwhelming for the reader. The information that is provided not up to date. When I select a story from the homepage, rather than opening up a new window, it opens up in the same window so I lose the home-page. IV. It does not provide information regarding the separation of the ministry from the ministry of Science and Information Technology V. There are too many categories, which can be overwhelming. I would prefer the categories to be less specific and more general. VI. VII. The website cannot be translated into Bangla which is a big weakness of this site. The information that are found in the next step agencies links, are mostly written in Bangla.

7. Possible measures to improve the website:

There are some findings that should improve the website of the Ministry of Information of Bangladesh. Those are mentioned below; The website should also be translated in Bangla. A strong support framework must be ensured. The information of the website should be regularly updated. Key challenges and untapped opportunities for the development of the website should be specified. The categories of the information should be made more specific and general. Website should be revitalized through priority based department or agencies. The security system of the website should be strong.

8. Concluding remarks:
In conclusion we can say that the website of the ministry of Information should be made and provide more information about related issues. There some issues which can be recommended. These are given below: I. II. III. IV. V. VI. VII. Information must be more specific Website should be more user friendly There is no search option, there should be a search option There can be a link with the people of Bangladesh The information of the Ministry of Information should be timely updated. The security system should be strong There may be developed an blogging system that browser can blog their consent