more than $400,000 annually for this eService. The GovNet platform is fully deployed, maintained and managed by Libtelco. SNAPSHOT GOVNET BRINGS THE LIBERIAN GOVERNMENT INTO THE DIGITAL AGE Improving connectivity and efficiency for the Government of Liberia. Government of Liberia, USAID, and Digital Liberia project staff attend the official GovNet launch in June 2019. "The creation of GovNet will enhance tax revenue and improved tax administration, enhance budget management and expenditure through the effective use of the IFMIS database, and support the National Biometric Registry among others. This means government ministries will no longer experience internet problems, which slows down employee functions and services delivery systems that continue to cause the government to lose thousands of dollars on a daily basis. In addition, the coming of GovNet will help to save the government of over $400,000 annually due to the affordability of the platform." Councilor Cooper Kruah, Minister of Posts and Telecommunications In 2017, the USAID Digital Liberia and e-Government Activity worked with government partners to design and pilot GovNet, an intranet network that provides a faster, more reliable way for government agencies to share information. Since the pilot, more than 90 ministries, agencies, and commissions have started to use GovNet to reconcile financial transactions with the Ministry of Finance and Development. GovNet saves government employees significant time in conducting their daily duties. For example, it has reduced the time needed to complete a budget execution report by 44%. Instead of relying on internet, GovNet connects agencies through a secure fiber connection that is 20 times faster than typical wireless connections. GovNet connects agencies by a virtual link, eliminating the need to use standard internet bandwidth, providing significant cost savings. To ensure sustainability of GovNet, Digital Liberia worked with the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications and Libtelco to integrate GovNet into existing systems. After the initial piloting and testing phase, Libtelco took responsibility for hosting GovNet, incorporating the intranet into its business as a ‘value-added service” to the government. With the introduction of GovNet, government ministries and agencies have the ability to no longer operate in silos. Financial management platforms are already connected over the intranet, while payment systems, asset management systems, and other e-services are currently in the process of being connected. Government employees are impressed with the speed and reliability of GovNet, reporting higher user satisfaction and network reliability. “GovNet saved me a lot of headache” says Victor Neeplo, data center manager for Liberia’s Integrated Financial Management Information System. “For the last several years, I had to have a core team worried about connectivity. We’re in a country where, if you use radio connection as your primary source of connection, you can expect interruption. GovNet is about having reliability, availability, security.” GovNet is just one of the ways that Digital Liberia is working to advance the government of Liberia’s National e-Government Strategy. Through more reliable systems, stronger ICT infrastructure, and digital integration, Digital Liberia is helping government agencies to improve communication, collaboration, and provide better services to Liberian citizens. While GovNet is an excellent solution for GOLs intranet challenges, it only worked until the MACs were switched over to CSquared fiber and Libtelco disconnected MACs for non-payment. Because GovNet runs over CSquared fiber, it also incurs charges that Libtelco is unwilling to pay without DIGITAL LIBERIA FINAL REPORT | 17