AP26102429 Increasing accountability and transparency in the planning and implementation of digital projects in public administration based on the application of Project Management in the Republic of Kazakhstan

Project Leader: Rymkul Ismailova, Doctor of Economic Sciences, Professor at the School of Digital Public Administration

Funding Source: Grant Funding of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan

Implementation Period: 2025–2027

Total Funding: 88 865 226 KZT

To develop practical recommendations for enhancing accountability and transparency in the planning and implementation of public digital projects in the Republic of Kazakhstan. This will be achieved through the introduction of flexible approaches; the use of digital solutions; proposals for amendments to existing legislation aimed at optimizing timelines and stages of project execution and improving budget procedures during project planning. As a result of the project, new approaches and tools are expected to be created to ensure effective management of government digital projects, strengthen citizen oversight, which will increase trust in government bodies and improve feedback.

1) Review of previous research and best international practices in project management in public administration.

1.1 Study of modern concepts (Good Governance, E-Government, Data-driven Government). The task will help to define the basic principles, criteria and tools of accountability and transparency of the activities of public administration entities, including data availability, openness of decisions and interaction with civil society.

1.2 Study of project management concepts (waterfall model, Agile, hybrid). The task will provide an understanding of various approaches to project management, which will help to adapt them to improve efficiency in the public sector.

1.3 Comparative analysis of international experience in applying Agile methodology in the public sector. The objective is to identify best practices, which is important for developing recommendations for implementing flexible approaches in the field of public project management in Kazakhstan.

2) Analysis of accountability and transparency of government digital projects implemented using project management in the Republic of Kazakhstan.

2.1 Analysis of the current state of project management in public administration of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The task allows to identify barriers in the use of project management, such as resistance to change, lack of qualified personnel, tight budgets and determine ways to overcome them, which can be solved with the help of Agile.

2.2 Analysis of the process of planning and implementation of state digital projects, regulated by the current legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The task is aimed at studying the timing, budget management and achievement of planned indicators.

2.3 Evaluation of the monitoring and reporting system for state digital projects. The task involves analyzing existing mechanisms for monitoring and reporting state digital projects, including assessing their effectiveness, frequency of reports, and availability of information for stakeholders. The task includes conducting a sociological survey among key stakeholders to determine the level of accountability and transparency. The results of this task will help identify existing problems and propose effective methods to overcome them.

3) Develop practical recommendations for enhancing accountability and transparency in the planning and implementation of government digital projects in the Republic of Kazakhstan.

3.1 Develop a methodology for implementing Agile methods in the implementation of government digital projects, taking into account the peculiarities and limitations of public administration, as well as recommendations for implementing a flexible framework based on Living Lab. Propose a training program for civil servants titled “Digital Tools and Agile Project Management Methods.”

3.2 Develop recommendations for amending existing legislation aimed at transparency, optimization, and flexibility of business processes in the planning and implementation of government digital projects.

3.3 Develop practical recommendations for creating an architectural module based on “open.egov.kz” to enhance accountability, including the placement of public reports on an online platform, obtaining feedback from citizens and experts at each stage of the implementation of government digital projects.

1) Within the project implementation, it is planned to:

– at least 2 (two) articles or reviews in a peer-reviewed scientific publication indexed in the Social Science Citation Index and included in the 1st (first) or 2nd (second) quartile by impact factor in the Web of Science database and (or) having a CiteScore percentile in the Scopus database of at least 50 (fifty);

– at least 4 (four) articles and (or) reviews in peer-reviewed foreign and (or) domestic publications recommended by the Committee on the Review of Scientific and Educational Institutions of the Russian Federation;

One of the articles will be categorized as multidisciplinary (multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary practical application).

For domestic journals from list 1 of the KOKNVO that do not belong to the multidisciplinary category, journals from lists 1 and 2 of the KOKNVO that are indexed in two or more categories are counted.

– Training of at least 1 (one) PhD. In this case, the dissertation may be defended no later than 2 (two) years after completion of the project

• Publication of the monograph “The Impact of Agile Project Management Methods and Digitalization on the Level of Accountability and Transparency in State Digital Projects of the Republic of Kazakhstan” (10 pp, 100 copies) in the Kazakh publishing house.

2) Disseminate research results among potential users, the scientific community, and the general public.

The research results will be submitted to relevant government bodies and organizations engaged in project management activities, and the findings may be utilized by researchers, master’s students, and doctoral candidates for studies related to the project topic.

3) Within the research project, it is planned to develop practical recommendations for applying flexible management methods (Scrum, Kanban, Lean, SAFe (Scaled Agile Framework), Design Thinking) to digital projects at the planning and implementation stages to ensure flexibility in project budgeting, timelines, and quality of execution.

4) The research results may serve as a scientific and practical basis for studies in project management in the public sector and for conducting further research at the international level.

5) The research results are practice-oriented and will be recommended to the Ministry of Digital Development, Innovations and Aerospace Industry of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Ministry of National Economy of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Project Management Monitoring Center of the Digital Government Support Center, and other interested parties for further implementation in practice.

6) A comparative analysis at the international and national levels of the application of flexible project management methods will help identify opportunities for implementing the experiences of various countries that have achieved the best results in this area into domestic practice.

Scientific and Technical Effect: Development of practical recommendations and publication of scientific research results.

Multiplicative Effect: Ensuring accountability and transparency in the planning and implementation of government digital projects through the application of Agile and digital solutions will facilitate the dissemination of this experience to other types of government projects and promote the spread of Agile in various sectors of public administration.