The National Development Council said it has instructed government agencies at all levels to remove at least half of the apps developed during former president Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) terms due to their low user numbers and poor reviews.
Following Ma’s “e-Government” initiative, government agencies developed 278 apps and 396 Web sites from 2012 to 2014.
Statistics released by the council show that the apps cost NT$250 million (US$7.76 million), with the cost of each app averaging about NT$372,000.
The National Audit Office said in a meeting earlier this week that the purpose of some government apps overlap with about 20 percent of apps developed by the private sector and that some apps had very few downloads, have not been updated for more than one year or have poorly designed user interfaces.
A resolution made at the meeting said that identified apps should be improved or discontinued, and that no more should be developed unless necessary.
The office said that government agencies should focus on releasing data to the public rather than developing apps, adding that agencies should update apps regularly and promote them.
The council said apps developed by government agencies must pass an information security test by the end of this year that protects users’ privacy.
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