Who runs digital government? The ministers in charge

Digital government needs someone in charge. In 70 of the 193 countries in Govpedia, a member of the cabinet holds a title that names digital affairs, digital transformation or artificial intelligence. The list below is drawn from each government’s own list of ministers, ordered by the country’s UN e-government rank.

The ministers

DenmarkChristina EgelundMinister of Science, Higher Education and Digital Affairs#1Sourced

EstoniaLiisa-Ly PakostaJustice and Digital Affairs#2Verified

SingaporeJosephine TeoMinister for Digital Development and Information#3Verified

United KingdomLisa NandySecretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport#7Verified

NetherlandsWillemijn AerdtsMinister for the Digital Economy and Sovereignty#10Verified

United Arab EmiratesOmar Bin Sultan Al OlamaMinister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications#11Sourced

GermanyKarsten WildbergerFederal Minister for Digital Transformation and Government Modernisation#12Verified

JapanToshiharu FurukawaMinister for Digital Transformation; Minister in charge of Cybersecurity#13Verified

NorwayTorgeir MicaelsenMinister of Digitalisation and Public Governance#15Sourced

SpainÓscar LópezMinister for Digital Transformation and Civil Service#17Verified

IrelandJack ChambersMinister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation#20Sourced

KazakhstanZhaslan MadiyevDeputy Prime Minister – Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development#24Verified

UkraineOksana FerchukMinister of Digital Transformation#30Verified

CroatiaDamir HabijanMinister of Justice, Public Administration and Digital Transformation#32Verified

FranceRoland LescureMinister of Economics, Finance and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty#34Sourced

GreeceDimitris PapastergiouMinister of Digital Governance#36Sourced

PolandKrzysztof GawkowskiDeputy Prime Minister, Minister of Digital Affairs#37Verified

South AfricaSolly MalatsiMinister of Communications and Digital Technologies#40Verified

RussiaMaksut ShadayevMinister of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media#43Sourced

LuxembourgStéphanie ObertinMinister for Digitalisation; Minister for Research and Higher Education#45Verified

MongoliaChinbatyn NominMinister of Digital Development, Innovation and Communications#46Sourced

CanadaEvan SolomonMinister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation#47Verified

ThailandChaichanok ChidchobMinister of Digital Economy and Society#52Sourced

BulgariaIvan VasilevMinister of Innovation and Digital Transformation#55Verified

MalaysiaGobind Singh DeoMinister of Digital#57Verified

UzbekistanSherzod ShermatovMinister of Digital Technologies#63Sourced

IndonesiaMeutya Viada HafidMinister of Communication and Digital Affairs#64Verified

MexicoJosé Antonio Peña MerinoHead of the Digital Transformation and Telecommunications Agency#65Sourced

MoldovaClaudiu NăsuiMinister of Economic Development and Digitalization#70Verified

RomaniaIrineu DarăuMinister of Economy, Digitalisation, Entrepreneurship and Tourism#72Sourced

AzerbaijanRashad NabiyevMinister of Transport, Communications and High Technologies of the Republic of Azerbaijan#74Verified

North MacedoniaStefan AndonovskiMinister of Digital Transformation#84Verified

Trinidad and TobagoDominic SmithMinister of Public Administration and Artificial Intelligence#86Verified

AndorraMarc Rossell SolerMinister of Public Service and Digital Transformation#88Verified

JordanSami SmeiratMinister of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship#89Verified

MoroccoAmal El Fallah SeghrouchniMinister Delegate to the Head of Government in charge of Digital Transition and Administration Reform#90Verified

IndiaAshwini VaishnawMinister of Railways; Minister of Information and Broadcasting; Minister of Electronics and Information Technology#97Sourced

Sri LankaAnura Kumara DissanayakePresident; Minister of Defence; Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development; Minister of Digital Economy#98Verified

San MarinoLuca BeccariSecretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Political Affairs, International Economic Cooperation and Digital Transition#102Verified

GrenadaRon RedheadMinister of State in the Office of the Prime Minister and Minister for Digital Transformation#104Sourced

GhanaSamuel Nartey GeorgeMinister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations#108Sourced

KenyaWilliam Kabogo GitauCabinet Secretary for Information, Communication and the Digital Economy#109Verified

Cabo VerdeAntónio José Medina dos Santos BaptistaMinister of Economy, Trade, Industry and Digital Transition#111Verified

Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesPhillip JacksonMinister of Education, Vocational Training and Innovation, Digital Transformation, and Information#117Verified

GabonMark-Alexandre DoumbaMinister of the Digital Economy, Digitalisation, Innovation and New Technologies#121Sourced

Côte d'IvoireDjibril OuattaraMinister of Digital Transition and Technological Innovation#124Verified

LibyaAbdul Warith al-HajjajiMinister of State for Digital Economy and Artificial Intelligence#125Sourced

LebanonKamal ShehadiMinister of the Displaced and Minister of State for Technology and Artificial Intelligence#126Sourced

DominicaFidel GrantMinister for Public Works, Public Utilities and Digital Economy#127Verified

Saint LuciaKenson Joel CasimirMinister for Education, Youth Development, Sports and Digital Transformation#133Verified

Saint LuciaDanny Marvin ButcherMinister in the Ministry of Education with responsibility for Early Childhood, Continuing and Special Education and Digital Transformation#133Verified

SenegalSamba DioufMinister of Telecommunications and Digital Affairs#135Verified

MyanmarMya Tun OoUnion Minister for Transport; Union Minister for Digital Development and Communications#138Sourced

NigeriaBosun TijaniMinister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy#144Sourced

BeninMahuna AkploganMinister of Digital Transformation and Innovation, responsible for the National Artificial Intelligence Strategy#146Verified

GuineaMourana SoumahMinister of Communication, Digital Economy and Innovation#160Sourced

TogoCina LawsonMinister of Public Service Efficiency and Digital Transformation#161Sourced

MauritaniaAhmed Salem BedeMinister of Digital Transformation and the Modernisation of the Administration#165Verified

Republic of the CongoFrédéric Malik Nguema NzeMinister of Posts, Telecommunications and the Digital Economy#166Verified

MadagascarMahefa AndriamampiadanaMinister of Digital Development, Digital Transformation, Posts and Telecommunications#168Verified

Guinea-BissauFlorentino Mendes PereiraMinister of Transport, Telecommunications and Digital Economy#170Sourced

MaliAlhamdou Ag IlyèneMinister of Communication, Digital Economy and Modernisation of the Administration#173Verified

DjiboutiSafia Mohamed Ali GadilehMinister Delegate in charge of the Digital Economy and Innovation#174Verified

Burkina FasoAminata Zerbo/SabanéMinister of Digital Transition, Posts and Electronic Communications#175Verified

MozambiqueAmérico MuchangaMinister of Communications and Digital Transformation#177Verified

SudanAhmed al-Dirdiri GhandourMinister of Digital Transformation and Communications#178Sourced

Democratic Republic of the CongoAugustin Kibassa MalibaMinister of the Digital Economy#179Verified

ComorosOumouri Madi HassaniMinister of Posts, Telecommunications, the Digital Economy and Transparency#180Sourced

BurundiAlain NdikumanaMinister of Finance, Budget and the Digital Economy#183Verified

ChadHaliki Choua MahamatMinister of Telecommunications, Digital Economy and Digitalisation#189Sourced

Central African RepublicRoger AndjalandjiMinister of the Digital Economy, Posts and Telecommunications#193Sourced

Three patterns

• A minister for digital alone, such as Germany’s Federal Minister for Digital Transformation and Government Modernisation or Ukraine’s Minister of Digital Transformation.
• Digital joined to another portfolio: justice in Estonia, science in Denmark, public expenditure in Ireland, culture and media in the United Kingdom.
• No digital title in the cabinet: in Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei, Cambodia, Cameroon, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Cyprus, Czechia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, Gambia, Georgia, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Kiribati, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia, Lesotho, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Malawi, Maldives, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Micronesia, Monaco, Montenegro, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, North Korea, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Samoa, São Tomé and Príncipe, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Sudan, Suriname, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tunisia, Türkiye, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, United States, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe, the work sits with another ministry, an agency or a junior minister outside the cabinet.

A title is only a signal: some of the strongest digital states run it from an agency or from the centre of government. Each country’s page shows its UN e-government scores beside its cabinet.