3. ICT PROGRESS The following section provides an overview of progress made in ICT sector in Malawi in the areas of E-Government, Infrastructure Development, Education, E-Health and others. 3.1 E-Government Malawi government recognized the important role of ICT in government and established the E-Government Department in the office of the President and Cabinet in the year 2012. Before this initiative, ICT services were provided through the Department of Information, Systems and Technology Management Services (DISTMIS). An E-Government strategy was developed in the same year. Additionally, the long drafted National ICT Policy was refined and was approved by Cabinet in September 2013. The overall aim of the policy is to promote the country's socioeconomic development, supporting the aspirations of Vision 2020, with priority being given to ICT initiatives that contribute to poverty reduction. The e-government element focuses on the modernisation and improved efficiency of public services. 3.2 E-Legislation E-Legislation or the Electronic Transactions and Data Protection Bill (E-Bill) funded by the World Bank RCIPMW aims to set up a responsive ICT Legal framework to facilitate competition, development and participation of ICT for users in Malawi. The draft bill is designed to promote the development of e-Commerce in Malawi by supporting the use of electronic transactions. To this end, the bill provides guidelines and protection for electronic messages and signatures; promotes the development of legal and business infrastructure in support secure e-Commerce, cyber crime, domain name management, E-Government, E-Waste. It also has provision for the 26