Here's where your help's needed:
What is wrong with the content now?
What could be done to improve?
What things are missing?
What type of information might be suitable for the format of the
govermental portal and be of interest to the English-speaking community?
The deadline is too soon, unfortunately - on Monday morning. But it'd be really cool if you could send in some of your ideas. Thanks a lot for your time!
1. from the technical/design point of view - it is too much of everything on one page...so layout is definitely to be developed...
ReplyDelete2. mixture of Ukrainian and English on the same page (click on the link "for foreigners"...stupid classification, but anyway), you will see some parts in English and others in Ukrainian. Is it kinda adaptation to Ukrainian language for foreigners? Thank you, I wouldn't need it, when browsing Zimbabwian government web site
3. about content..I don't know, but let's say I didn't find any information on how foreigners can get lisences, permits, or even citizenship (there are a few I know)
I don't think there's too much wrong with the content as such - it's the quality of the English that needs to be improved a bit, I think. At present the site doesn't read as though it's written by native English-speakers, and the translated reports and articles contain too many sentences like
ReplyDeleteIt has been decided during the meeting of the Commission to complete by the end of 2006 the Concept working out.
I'd say the first place to look for content for the English page is the Ukrainian page. This page looks like it suffers from some of the same problems I remember seeing on the CVK page back during parliamnetary elections-- I can't browse it in English, because half of the details and links I'm looking for are only on the Ukrainian page.
ReplyDeleteI agree that there are way too many categories on the page. Many are hard to understand. What is "e-government" for example? When I click on it, I get a category called "informatization in Ukraine." What is this? Confusing in many places.
ReplyDeleteTry as an example the German Government website in English http://www.bundesregierung.de/en. There are only three categories -- gov'tinformation, services and latest news.
The English on the Ukrainian site is really badly done in a lot of places. It's difficult to understand sometimes. The quality of translation would be a top priority to improve. Even PM Yekhanurov's biography is oddly translated.
There is no news search function for English news as far as I can tell. That would be very helpful.
Links within stories to other relavant or related stories would also be helpful. For example, there's a news story that Ukraine joins EU's statement about Tajikistan but no link to the actual statement.
In fact, there don't appear to be English versions of most important documents that would be of interest internationally. Treaties, inter-state agreements, etc. Of course, energy agreements, but the gov't wouldn't likely want these publicized.
Okay ... this is too long. Hope it helps!