Civic Engage Product Requirements Document (PRD)

Product Overview

Civic Engage is a digital platform designed to promote transparency and citizen participation in government activities. Government officials will submit weekly reports on their office activities, and citizens will be able to view these reports, request infrastructure, and vote or unvote on requests made by others. The platform aims to enhance civic engagement, improve accountability, and streamline citizen requests for better governance.

Goals and Objectives of Civic Engage Platform.

Increase transparency of government operations.

Enable citizens to easily submit and support infrastructure requests.

Improve government responsiveness to citizen needs through data-driven prioritization.

Encourage civic participation and a culture of accountability.

User Personas; These are the people that will be making use of Civic Engage Platform. They are;

1. Government Official (Primary Persona)

Name: Mr. John Okon

Age: 45

Role: Director of Public Works

Motivations: He is to ensure transparency and accountability in office operations.

Communicate effectively with the public.

Prioritize government actions based on public interest.

Frustrations: His frustrations is lack of clear channels for citizen feedback.

Unclear prioritization of infrastructure projects.

Goals:

Streamline report submissions for greater transparency.

Respond efficiently to high-priority infrastructure requests.

Improve public trust in government initiatives.

2. Citizen (Secondary Persona)

Name: Mrs. Fatima Ibrahim

Age: 32

Role: School Teacher

Motivations: Her motivation is to improve community infrastructure, such as roads, schools, and utilities.

Hold government officials accountable for their promises.

Engage with government activities that affect her neighborhood.

Frustrations:

Difficulty accessing information on government projects.

Lack of transparency in project timelines.

Goals:

Easily request infrastructure improvements.

Vote on requests important to the community.

Stay updated on the progress of government activities.

3. Features

1. Government Report Submission

Description: Government officials will submit weekly reports detailing office activities, completed tasks, and future plans.

User Story: As a government official, I want to submit weekly activity reports, so that citizens are informed of ongoing projects and activities.

Acceptance Criteria:

Officials can upload reports via a web or mobile interface.

Reports must be categorized by department.

Reports are timestamped and archived.

2. Citizen Report Viewing

Description: Citizens can view submitted reports by government officials, filtered by department or geographic area.

User Story: As a citizen, I want to view government activity reports, so that I can stay informed about the work being done by my local representatives.

Acceptance Criteria:

Citizens can search and filter reports by department, location, or keyword.

Reports are easily shareable through social media.

3. Infrastructure Request Submission

Description: Citizens can submit requests for infrastructure improvements (e.g., new roads, school repairs).

User Story: As a citizen, I want to request an infrastructure project, so that my community’s needs are addressed by the government.

Acceptance Criteria:

Request form includes fields for project type, description, location, and urgency.

Requests can be submitted with photos or documents to support the need.

4. Voting on Infrastructure Requests

Description: Citizens can vote or unvote on infrastructure requests submitted by other users to prioritize them.

User Story: As a citizen, I want to vote on infrastructure requests that matter to me, so that government resources are allocated to high-priority needs.

Acceptance Criteria:Each request shows the current vote count.

Citizens can change their vote at any time (vote or unvote).

Projects with higher votes are displayed prominently.

5. Notification System

Description: Citizens and officials receive notifications for new reports, request statuses, and voting outcomes.

User Story: As a citizen, I want to receive notifications on government reports or infrastructure requests I’m following, so I can stay updated.

Acceptance Criteria: Notifications are available via email, SMS, or in-app alerts.

Citizens are notified when their requests are voted on or updated by officials.

4. Project Strategy

1. Phase 1: MVP (Minimum Viable Product)- Focus on launching a simplified version of the platform with the following features:

Government report submission and citizen viewing.

Basic infrastructure request submissions by citizens.

Basic upvote/downvote functionality.

4. Phase 2: Enhanced Features

After collecting feedback from MVP users, iterate on the platform with:

Advanced filtering for report viewing.

Notification systems for requests and report updates.

Visual analytics for officials to prioritize high-voted requests.

4.Phase 3: Expansion & Integration

Introduce advanced data visualization tools for citizens to track project progress.

Integrate the platform with government service portals for status tracking on requests.

Add mobile app capabilities to improve accessibility.

5. Technical Requirements- These are;

1. Platform

Web App: Accessible via modern browsers.

Mobile App: Android and iOS versions for broader access.

2. Database

A relational database (e.g., PostgreSQL) to store user profiles, reports, requests, and voting data.

3. Security

All data must be encrypted at rest and in transit.

Secure user authentication (e.g., OAuth2) to prevent unauthorized access.

4. APIs

RESTful API for report submissions, infrastructure request submissions, and voting.

API integrations with government data systems for official verification of requests

Note: Lucid chart and Figma will also be used for graphical representation.