Usability of blockchain in interaction processes between digital government stakeholders in Turkey

In the process that started with the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in public administration and service delivery, the traditional state first transformed into e- government and then digital government. In the digital government, a structuring that responds to the needs of citizens and stakeholders, has interoperable, integrated, effective, transparent and simplified business processes is aimed. However, there are difficulties in the interaction processes between information systems, technical problems, administrative processes and institutions in making sense of each other's data and transforming it into a suitable format. Although blockchain and its underlying distributed ledger technology emerge as a technology in the field of finance, it can be applied in interaction processes between institutions in terms of transparency, efficiency, data integrity and security, with regards to interoperability. The study aims to examine the academic literature on the current application areas of blockchain technology and digital government, to evaluate the usability of this technology in the interaction processes between digital government stakeholders and possible difficulties and limitations in Turkey. The method of the study was determined as a case study based on the literature. First of all, the features of digital government and blockchain technology and academic literature were analyzed. Then, the current situation of Turkey and international organizations and countries that include blockchain technology in their strategies and policies and test it with pilot applications are examined. In the light of the analysis, the most appropriate deductions for interoperability in the context of digital state in Turkey were made and potential difficulties and limitations were determined. The study shows that blockchain technology has had minimal impact on the public sector so far and that Turkey is in an early stage in terms of blockchain implementation in the public sphere; country examples and pilot studies show that blockchain can be a new way to improve interaction processes. Therefore, it has been found that it is important to conduct proof-of-concept and pilot studies. Due to the potential of the immutability feature of the blockchain to threaten personal data and privacy, its application areas need to be considered in detail.