Lanka Interoperability Framework (LIFe) V2

A fundamental necessity for successful e-Government realization is adoption of the Government Interoperability Framework (GIF). The GIF facilitates interaction among diverse Information Systems in government to share and exchange data. The Information and Communication Technology Agency of Sri Lanka (ICTA) – an apex government body involved in ICT policy and direction for the nation, has produced many guiding documents in this respect. The 'Lanka Interoperability Framework' (LIFe) in particular is drafted to standardize data architecture and data exchange. Also, the 'Digital Nation Architecture Framework' (DNA-F), 'Guidelines on Nationwide Enterprise Architecture (NEA) Standards' and 'Addendum to the NEA Guidelines on Standards Document' are few other documents, ICTA has drafted in this relation.

While these guidelines were useful in the initial ventures, with detailed execution, it was realized that, with growing complexities in Information Systems across the government, it is necessary to review the existing documents and extend them to cover all aspects of a generic GIF. For instance, the earlier versions of LIFe, drafted in partnership with the Ministry of Public Administration and Home Affairs had a limited scope only to cover personal details of an individual. Similarly, the DNA-F is regarded more as an early strategy and road map document rather than a fully fledged nationwide Enterprise Architecture framework. Hence, it was necessary to review these old documents and formulate a strategy to achieve a comprehensive and sustainable GIF for Sri Lanka.

The key aspects of the resulting GIF (contained in version 2.0 (V2) of the LIFe) are: the standards & guidelines and its governance mechanism. The standards are further categorized under three sub sets as: 1. Technical standards, 2. Data standards, and 3. Process standards.