EESC CORNER: eGovernment Action Plan 2016–2020 – Accelerating the Digital Transformation of Government

The digital transformation of government is a key element to the success of the Single Market; helping to remove existing digital barriers and preventing further fragmentation arising in the context of the modernisation of public administrations. The previous eGovernment Action Plan 2011–2015 led to the development of technological enablers that are key to facilitate access to and use of public services.

Today, eGovernment is more than just taking up technologies. Modern administrations should deliver public services for citizens and businesses, designed by citizens and businesses and on the demand of citizens and businesses.

The new eGovernment Action Plan 2016–2020 aims:

to modernise public administration
to achieve the digital internal market, and
to engage more with citizens and businesses to deliver high quality services

The Action Plan will support coordination and collaboration at European Union level. Through the joint efforts between Member States and the Commission, the availability and take-up of eGovernment services can be increased, resulting in faster, cheaper and more user-oriented digital public services.

The EESC supports the proposals aimed at speeding up implementation of ef cient, interoperable and universally accessible eGovernment. EGovernment can only work if other prerequisites, such as the provision of an ef cient network and digital services, universal, affordable access and adequate digital training for users of all levels and ages, are met. Whilst it is supposed to become the default means of communication in the medium or long term, traditional means of communicating with public administrations (postal delivery, personal contact, telephone) should be maintained for members of the public who wish to use them. As regards the “once only” principle, according to which individuals and businesses should not have to supply the same information to public administrations more than once, the EESC notes that there are still unresolved legal and organisational problems and calls on the Commission to launch a pilot scheme in this area. It also proposes making provision for the “whole-of-government approach”, which involves collaboration between the different public bodies that extends beyond their respective fields of competence with a view to providing the public with a combined response from a single body.

The EESC also regrets that the “no legacy” principle, which involves renewing IT systems and technologies in public administrations so as to keep pace with technological developments, does not feature among the adopted principles. It insists, under the principle of “openness and transparency”, on citizens and businesses having an explicit right to delete their personal data (right to be forgotten) and urges the Commission to submit a proposal for a secure European archive and online document exchange system.

Marie Zvolská, Group I, EESC