National Progress Report EU eGovernment

A National Progress Report on eGovernment in the EU27+, was presented at the Ministerial eGovernment Conference in Lisbon. The meeting attended by 22 eGovernment Ministers reviewed progress made on implementing eGovernment Services since the launch of the European Commission’s i2010 initiative for Growth and Jobs (2005), the Manchester Ministerial Declaration (2005) and the i2010 eGovernment Action Plan agreed by Council in June 2006.

Most EU Member States policies and implementation actions are now in place and aligned with the goals of the Action Plan. Services are becoming more effective nationally and more interoperable at European level; delivering higher quality, saving billions of euros through efficiency gains, and increasing transparency and accountability of administrations.

The National Progress Report revealed impressive progress in transforming public administrations, thereby boosting economic growth by placing citizens and businesses at the centre of government services. Member States have developed and agreed roadmaps for mutual recognition and authentication of electronic identities, for cross-border eProcurement and for inclusive eGovernment. Equally important is the effort to reduce administrative burdens for both citizens and businesses, the increasing level of eParticipation activity, and the willingness of public administrations to share good practices.

The achievements of Member States has been further confirmed by an independent survey "The user challenge: Benchmarking the supply of online public services" undertaken and published for the Commission by Capgemini.

While progress has been impressive, work needs to continue. Stock will be taken again at the next Ministerial eGovernment Conference in Stockholm in 2009, during the Swedish Presidency.

Blog Posting Number: 874

Tags: eGovernment