Utilization of AI in public administration(1/2)Promotion of Digital Evolution is important

This article is written by Mr. Tadashi Shikimori,Chief Fellow, Institute for International Socio-Economic Studies（NEC Group）

Epoch-making Technology
Lately AI (Artificial Intelligence) is getting widely introduced and utilized in a variety of private areas such as financial, manufacturing, marketing and medical supported by enhancement of Big Data (a large amount of data) processing and by practical use of epoch-making technology such as deep learning which has not been available until recently.　Many of applications in these private areas could be used in the public administration areas.

Areas of public administrations which can possibly be improved and enhanced by application of AI are wide-ranging.　For example, judgement, sorting and classification of information. Accurate grasp of situation based on information. Proposition of the most appropriate solution out of plural options. Drafting of documents, graphs and ordinance bills. Prior evaluation of influence and effect of policies based on predictions of future changes of trend. Prediction of natural disasters and crimes and accidents and preparation of proposal of countermeasures against them. Proposition of the most suitable and appropriate answers to non-standardized enquiries and requests for advice from local residents.

Japanese Government gave the definition of AI legally by law in the Basic Act on the Advancement of Public and Private Sector Data Utilization enacted at the end of year 2016.　“AI (Artificial Intelligence related technology) is defined as realization of intellectual functions like study, reasoning, judgement by artificial measures, and, as technology for utilization of related functions realized by artificial way.”　In the act AI is defined widely not in the limited area of machine learning so that AI is free to be utilized in the government administration service.

Contribution to Efficiency
Currently it can not be said that the utilization of AI technology is so widely made in the governmental service in Japan, but, Japanese Government declared clearly “Japan would study and consider positively the introduction and deployment of new technology such as AI in the government administration service to improve the level of service and to provide benefits to users” in the Digital Government Action Plan proposed in January 2018.

In the future the central and local government will face more and more difficult situation in allocating enough financial and staff budget while problems and issues to be solved in the administration service are getting more and more complicated.

In order to cope with such difficult situation they are expecting that AI would contribute to greatly improve the efficiency and to enhance the service level of public administration.　In the local administration they are expecting that AI contribute greatly to revitalize local economy when used in the area of City Management, commonly used for multi-purpose applications, and commonly used in specific application among different communities.

Japanese Government ministries have started to study how AI can be introduced and utilized and some ministries actually started experimental projects.

Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications is now progressing the project to establish the system where AI analyze and summarize the information obtained in SNS (Social Network Service) to report the damaged condition by earthquake.　National Tax Agency is now having the project to utilize AI to analyze requests for advice from tax payers and to find out and show automatically on the screen the most appropriate answer for each request.　The Patent Office is trying to utilize AI in the job to cope with questions and enquiries concerning patents.　Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced the idea to establish “AI managed Container Terminal”.

Issues to introduce AI
When introducing AI in the public administration there are a lot of issues to be cleared.

Some of the issues are:
-Staff involved in the actual administration job to understand properly AI characteristics and role
-Specialist to be allocated with AI knowledge
-Introduction of AI only economically justifiable
-Proper budgeting
-Management of transparent data to be maintained
-Management of personal data to be maintained
-boundary of responsibility to be clarified

The utilization of AI is one part of Digital Transformation progressed currently in IT sector. 

As far as digitalization of public administration service is concerned, the ratio of on-line application among public service applications stays still only at 12% and majority of applications still rely on paper.　If AI is to be positively utilized in public administration, it is important that digital transformation is further promoted and progressed in the sector accordingly.　In the next issue some advanced cases in foreign countries will be reported.