Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions - The Role of eGovernment for Europe's Future [SEC(2003) 1038]
Date: 2003-09-26
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: access to information, electronic government, information system, public administration, public service

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES

Brussels, 26.9.2003
COM(2003) 567 final

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL, THE
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL
COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS

The Role of eGovernment for Europe's Future

{SEC(2003) 1038 }

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL, THE
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL
COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS

The Role of eGovernment for Europe's Future

(Text with EEA relevance)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.

2.

2.1.

2.2.

2.3.

3.

4.

Introduction .................................................................................................................. 4

Challenges facing Europe’s public sector .................................................................... 5

Responding to a changing world.................................................................................. 5

Higher expectations from citizens and companies....................................................... 7

Coping with limited resources – more with less .......................................................... 7

The role of eGovernment ............................................................................................. 7

State of play, issues and actions ................................................................................... 9

4.1.

State of play.................................................................................................................. 9

4.1.1.

Services to citizens – a better quality of life .............................................................. 10

4.1.2.

Services to businesses - boosting competitiveness in Europe.................................... 11

4.1.3.

Services between administrations - strengthening cooperation ................................. 12

4.2.

Issues and actions ....................................................................................................... 12

4.2.1.

Inclusive access .......................................................................................................... 13

4.2.2.

Trust and confidence .................................................................................................. 14

4.2.3. Better use of public sector information ...................................................................... 15

4.2.4.

Public procurement .................................................................................................... 16

4.2.5.

Strengthening the Internal Market and European Citizenship through Pan-European
Services ...................................................................................................................... 17

4.2.6.

Interoperability........................................................................................................... 18

4.2.7. Organisational change................................................................................................ 20

4.2.8.

Performance and benefits of eGovernment................................................................ 20

5.

5.1.

5.2.

An eGovernment Roadmap........................................................................................ 21

Reinforcing the exchange of good practice................................................................ 21

Leveraging investment ............................................................................................... 22

2

5.3.

5.4.

Meeting the eEurope 2005 targets.............................................................................. 23

Conclusions ................................................................................................................ 23

Annex – Overview of Actions.................................................................................................. 25

3

1.

INTRODUCTION

The  public  sector  plays  a  very  important  role  in  Europe’s  social  and  economic  model  by
supporting  high  levels  of  welfare  for  citizens,  ensuring  socio-economic  cohesion  and
supporting the functioning of a competitive market environment.It is engaged in a wide range
of  activities  from  education,  healthcare  and  social  security  to  protecting  consumers  and
strengthening the environment. Europe’s economic strengths, such as a skilled workforce and
leadership in major industries, require a proper functioning of its public sector.

Europe’s  public  sector  is  today  at  a  crossroads,  facing  challenging  economic  and  social
conditions, institutional change and the profound impact of new technologies. Expectation is
growing that, as it is a major economic actor for boosting economic growth, the public sector
can  and  will  play  a  strong  role  in  realising  the  Lisbon  strategy  for  economic,  social  and
environmental renewal.

Within  the  public  sector,  public  administrations  are  facing  the  challenge  of  improving  the
efficiency, productivity and quality of their services. All these challenges, however,  have to
be met with unchanged or even reduced budgets.

Information  and  communication  technologies  (ICT)  can  help  public  administrations  to  cope
with the many challenges. However, the focus should not be on ICT itself. Instead it should be
on  the  use  of  ICT  combined  with  organisational  change  and  new  skills  in  order  to  improve
public  services,  democratic  processes  and  public  policies.  This  is  what  eGovernment  is
about.

Already today, good practices in many countries show that eGovernment is a powerful means
indeed  to  deliver  better  quality  public  services,  reduce  waiting  times  and  improve  cost-
effectiveness, raise productivity, and improve transparency and accountability.

eGovernment should have a strategic focus: the achievement of the Lisbon goals, reduction of
barriers  to  the  internal  market  for  services  and  mobility  across  Europe,  effective
implementation of national policies and regional or local development.

However,  the  introduction  of  eGovernment  is  not  easy.  Providing  user-centred  services  and
cutting red tape (i.e. unnecessary administrative burden), requires that information is shared
across  departments  and  different  levels  of  government  (e.g.  between  the  local  and  national
level). More often than  not  this  implies  organisational  change.  It  requires  willingness  to  re-
think established ways of working. This often leads to resistance. Moreover, eGovernment is
not free. The pay-off often takes time.

Full-scale implementation of eGovernment raises  difficult issues. These include safeguarding
trust  and  confidence  in  online  interaction  with  governments,  widespread  access  to  online
services so that no digital divide is created, interoperability for information exchange across
organisational  and  national  borders,  and  advancing  pan-European  services  that  support
mobility in the Internal Market and European Citizenship.

Therefore, strong political leadership is needed, in order to overcome resistance and barriers,
to change mindsets, to push through organisational change, to sustain investment, and to keep
the long-term perspective in mind while insisting on concrete deliverables in the shorter term.

4

eGovernment  is  a  central  element  in  the  eEurope  2005  Action  Plan.  It  is  the  only  area  of
eEurope where governments not only need to ensure that the enabling conditions are in place,
but  where  they  alone  are    responsible  for  making  it  happen.  The  recent  eGovernment
conference,  part  of  the  eEurope  2005  Action  Plan1,  and  its  Ministerial  Declaration
demonstrated the benefits of making eGovernment a reality in Europe.

This Communication, building upon that Conference, EU programmes, national, regional and
local  strategies  and  initiatives,  and  the  work  of  the  Network  of  Public  Administrations,
analyses  the  current  state  of  play  in  eGovernment,  identifies  key  issues  and  barriers,  and
presents  a  coherent  set  of  actions  that  reinforce  eGovernment  within  the  eEurope  2005
context.

This  Communication  signals  the  importance  the  Commission  attaches  to  eGovernment  as  a
means  to  establish  world-class  public  administrations  at  all  levels  in  Europe  that  fully
contribute  to  the  Lisbon  strategy  through  new  and  better  public  services  for  citizens  and
businesses. It calls upon Member States to express political commitment and leadership and
to step up efforts with all actors in the private and public sector.

2.

Challenges facing Europe’s public sector

The  following  sections  analyse  the  challenges  confronting  public  administrations  and  the
broader public sector in Europe.

2.1.

Responding to a changing world

The  public  sector  is  challenged  to  play  a  key  role  in  modernising  Europe’s  economy  and
society, so that Europe becomes more competitive and dynamic, with sustainable growth and
capable  of  creating  more  and  better  jobs  while  providing  for  greater  social  cohesion.  These
are  the  Lisbon  targets  for  2010.  Their  achievement,  however,  depends  on  sustaining  a  high
average level of growth over the decade of 3% or more — current economic conditions have
highlighted the challenge this implies2.

Government revenues add up to 45% of the EU’s GDP. The public sector is the single largest
purchaser in the economy. Public consumption amounted to 20.6% of GDP in 2002, up from
19.9%  in  19983.  Public  administrations  are  also  a  major  provider  of  services  to  business,
influencing enterprises’ ability to compete, and of services to citizens, enabling them to obtain
education and training and to find jobs.

The counterpart of  ensuring the delivery  of many public services is found in  obligations  on
enterprises and citizens such as those relating to social security, environmental reporting and
tax collection. The cost of administrative obligations is estimated at 2-3%  of GDP and  falls
disproportionally on SMEs. Entrepreneurship and innovation are influenced by the time and

1

2

3

The  eGovernment  2003  Ministerial  conference  was  jointly  organised  by  the  Italian  Presidency  of  the
Council and the Commission, europa.eu.int/information_society/eeurope/egovconf/index_en.htm.
Spring  Report  2003;  European  Council  Conclusions  of  March  2003;  2003  Broad  Economic  Policy
Guidelines; Economic Forecast Spring 2003.
Statistical Annex Spring 2003 to the European Economy Report.

5

                                                
expense  needed  to  set  up  a  new  company,  which  can  vary  respectively  from  a  few  days  to
more than a month and from nothing to 1500 Euros4.

Making  such  activities  more  efficient  –  cutting  red  tape  –  and  more  effective  –accessible,
user-friendly,  secure,  targeted  –  will  boost  economic  growth  throughout  the  economy  as  a
whole.

Public administrations are also expected to be prepared for future and emerging challenges.

Demographic  changes  put  authorities  to  the  test.  For  example,  immigration,  conditioned  by
the  EU  policy  framework,  is  already  a  factor  for  demographic  change.  Maximising  the
positive effects of immigration may require stepping up efforts  in integration services,  from
language training to support for ethnic entrepreneurship, and dealing with increased demand
for multi-lingual and multi-cultural access to general public services.

The better functioning of the Internal Market will facilitate cross-border provision of services
and  mobility  within  Europe  for  employment,  educational  or  social  reasons.  It  will  thus
increase  the  range  of  demands  for  public  services.  Public  administrations  are  expected  to
provide cross-border and even pan-European public services.

In future citizens will increasingly expect authorities to safeguard liberty, justice and security,
throughout  the  EU.  This  implies  cooperation  across  Member  States  and  internationally,  as
well as dealing with new insecurities caused by technology.

Just  like  the  rest  of  the  economy,  public  administrations  and  the  public  sector  face  the
challenge of responding to new technological developments, in particular in information and
communication technology. For example, the Internet has enabled new forms of involvement
in policy-making, such as rapidly forming online opinion groups, public on-line consultations
or  the  systematic  collection  of  feedback  on  needs  for  help  and  advice  from  citizens  and
businesses.  This  means  that    public  administrations  must  review  their  established  ways  of
decision-making.

In the business world new  ways have been  emerging to organise value chains and customer
relationships. These suggest more  efficient and user-centred ways to deliver public services,
learning from but not blindly copying e-business, and new public-private partnerships5.

Today’s  achievements  in  bringing  public  services  online  are  based  on  research  done  in  the
past.  For  the  public  sector  to  become  more  active  in  shaping  the  knowledge  society,
innovation and research needs to be increased for and with the public sector.

Beyond the challenge to realise a modern public administration, there are further institutional
challenges  in  Europe.  These  originate  from  the  internal  market,  convergence  as  part  of  the
largest  ever  enlargement  process  towards  EU-25,  devolution  trends,  globalisation  and  the
European Convention with requirements for  new  governance. With  increased networking of
local,  regional  and  national  administrations  across  the  EU  for  multi-level  governance,  and
enabled by new technologies, a more integrated ‘European public space’ for EU citizens and
businesses is gradually emerging.

4

5

Benchmarking  Enterprise  Policy,  Results  from  the  2002  Scoreboard,  European  Commission  Staff
Working Document.
See also the report “eGovernment in Europe: State of Affairs”, prepared by EIPA for the eGovernment
2003 Conference.

6

                                                
2.2.

Higher expectations from citizens and companies

Citizens are becoming used to ever-faster response times and ever-higher quality of products
and  services  from  the  private  sector.  They  expect  the  same  performance  from  public
administrations too. Obscure procedures,  long  queues, having to  re-enter information that is
already held by the administration, and “one size fits all” approaches are all practices that are
increasingly criticised.

Public service provision is expected to become more user-friendly and personalised, adapted
to the needs of individuals. Public service generally needs to be inclusive, all citizens need to
be served, independently of their skills and capabilities, income, or geographical location. The
public  sector  cannot  choose  its  clients,  contrary  to  the  private  sector  (nor  can  the  public
usually choose whether or not to be clients of the public sector).

The  competitiveness  of  business  is  strongly  influenced  by  the  transaction  costs  incurred  in
dealing  with  administrations.  As  international  competition  becomes  fiercer,  businesses  are
demanding  that  red  tape  is  eliminated.  Governments  are  also  responsible  for  many  of  the
inputs to  production processes.  Firms  therefore  expect  cheaper  and  better  public  services  in
order that they may stay competitive.

Finally,  citizens  and  businesses  expect  authorities  to  become  more  accountable  for  the
management of taxpayers’ money. They also demand more transparency of decision-making
and  democratic  involvement  in  all  phases  of  policy  development.  ‘Democratic  deficit’  has
become  an  election  theme:  a  sense  of  democratic  ownership  is  expected  to  be  reinstated
amongst voters.

2.3.

Coping with limited resources – more with less

Governments are under pressure to deliver more value for taxpayers’ money. Administrations
have to deliver more and better services with equal or fewer resources. Public expenditure is
severely  constrained  in  many Member  States due to  slow economic  growth  and  the  need  to
reduce budget deficits. The challenge is to achieve productivity growth in the public sector in
order to create more opportunity for service improvement at equal cost.

Moreover,  with  the  ageing  of  the  population,  public  administrations  will  have  to  do  with
fewer employees and fewer working taxpayers as well, while  still having to provide largely
the same number of services and at better quality as well.

Civil servants demand more interesting jobs, with more opportunity for self-development and
personal  interaction.  But  job  guarantees  in  terms  of  lifetime  employment  and  benefits  are
increasingly being eroded. The attractiveness of the government as an employer is at stake.

3.

THE ROLE OF EGOVERNMENT

eGovernment is defined here as the use of information and communication technologies in
public administrations combined with organisational change and new skills in order to
improve  public  services  and  democratic  processes  and  strengthen  support  to  public
policies.

eGovernment is an enabler to realise  a better  and more  efficient administration.  It improves
the  development  and  implementation  of  public  policies  and  helps  the  public  sector  to  cope
with the conflicting demands of delivering more and better services with fewer resources.

7

While technology cannot transform bad procedures into good ones, eGovernment creates the
choice for the public sector to do its tasks differently.

For  example,  by  improving  efficiency  and  competition  in  public  procurement  through
electronic procurement, hundreds of millions of euros can be saved and reinvested in public
goods and services, thus contributing to economic growth. At the same time, the transparency
and accountability of public procurement improve.

Some governments have drastically cut the  time  needed to  set  up  a new  company  and  offer
free online registration. This enables entrepreneurs to dedicate their limited resources to truly
entrepreneurial activities. Through online social security  reporting,  companies  already  today
save on administrative overheads, thus freeing resources for production or innovation.

Making information from the public sector online available for re-use (where allowed under
the legal framework) enables businesses to develop more attractive and competitive products.

Providing information about training and jobs across the EU on a one-stop website as a pan-
European  service,  lowers  the  barrier  for  labour  mobility  in  the  Internal  Market.  Public
information  offered  in  several  languages  through  a  website  helps  immigrants  to  better  find
their way, thus easing economic and social integration.

eGovernment  enables  the  public  sector  to  maintain  and  strengthen  good  governance  in  the
knowledge society. This means:

(1) A  public  sector  that  is  open  and  transparent:  governments  that  are
to  democratic

the  citizens,  open 

to 

understandable  and  accountable 
involvement and scrutiny.

(2) A public sector that is at the service of all. A user-centred public sector will
be inclusive, that is, will exclude no one from its services and respect everyone
as individuals by providing personalised services.

(3) A  productive  public  sector  that  delivers  maximum  value  for  taxpayers’
money.  It  implies  that  less  time  is  wasted  standing  in  queues,  errors  are
drastically reduced, more time is available for professional face-to-face service,
and the jobs of civil servants can become more rewarding.

In  short,  eGovernment  is  helping  to  establish  a  more  open,  inclusive  and  productive  public
sector,  in  line  with  good  governance6.  This  is  the  pre-condition  for  a  public  sector  that  is
prepared for the future.

Good governance in the sense above, achieved by the proper combination of information and
communication technologies, organisational innovation and improved skills (‘eGovernance’),
is also applicable to services such as health, education and public transport.

eGovernance  is  therefore  a  wider  notion,  and  many  of  the  lessons  learned  and  actions
identified  below  are  also  applicable  to  online  service  provision  in  these  other  areas  such  as

6

These  objectives  reflect  the  principles  of  good  governance  of  the  2001  White  Paper  on  European
Governance, COM(2001) 428.

8

                                                
health  and  education.  However,  the  focus  here,  whenever  eGovernment  is  mentioned,  is  on
administrative services and support for democratic processes.

4.

STATE OF PLAY, ISSUES AND ACTIONS

4.1.

State of play

All European countries have been developing eGovernment plans and strategies over the past
few  years.  Progress  has  been  made  in  all  countries  in  bringing  public  services  online,  with
average  online  availability  growing  from  45%  to  60%  between  October  2001  and  October
2002)7.  At  this  stage  differences  between  countries  are  perhaps  less  important  than  growth
rates  and  strategic  commitment  to  modernising  public  administrations,  which  can  result  in
rapid progress over the coming years. Generally there is a tendency to move from technology
to solutions, as demonstrated at the recent eGovernment 2003 conference in Como.

Online availability of public services, from Oct 2001 to Oct 2002; growth rates 2001- 2002;
based on 20 public services; source: CGEY, Feb 2003

Online  provision  is  of  course  no  guarantee  of  online  usage.  Of  equal  importance  are
awareness  that  these  services  are  available,  the  affordability  of  access,  ease  of  use,  and
willingness to use these services. Above all, it is the real delivery of benefits that counts: how
people perceive these services, how they use them, the benefits they experience, and benefits
eGovernment brings  to  the  administration  itself.  Such  usage-oriented  data  are  currently  still
relatively scarce8.

7

8

Online  availability  is  a  weighted  average  of  the  sophistication  (support  for  information,  one-way
interaction, two-way interaction, full electronic case handling) of 20 public services for businesses and
citizens defined by European Commission and Council.
Some data are reported e.g. by IST projects such as SIBIS, which investigated in several countries the
willingness  to  use  public  services  online  compared  to  traditional  usage,  the  actual  awareness  of  such
services,  and  their  actual  usage  (http://www.sibis-eu.org/sibis/).  Usage  data  are  also  reported  and
analysed in the recent IPTS report “ePublic services in Europe: past, present and future”.

9

                                                
From  a  commercial  perspective  eGovernment  is  already  a  sizeable  market.  In  2002  about
€30 billion was spent on the ICT part of public administration (administrative services only,
excluding health, defence, education, etc). Of this an estimated €5 billion, growing rapidly at
15%  p.a., was spent on  ICT for eGovernment9. However, this is only a  fraction of  the  total
spending  on  eGovernment,  since  there  is  a  significant  accompanying  investment  in
(re-)organisation and training.

4.1.1.

Services to citizens – a better quality of life

eGovernment has already shown to have significant effects on citizens’ life. Citizens can have
greater access to information  from  authorities.  That  enables  them  to  understand  where  their
taxes  are  spent  and  how  decision-making  is  done,  thus  empowering  citizens.  This  is  an
improvement towards more transparent, accountable and open public institutions. It reinforces
democracy. In addition, greater transparency helps in the fight  against  corruption and  fraud.
These  are  important  potential  benefits,  not  only  in  Europe  but  also  in  developing  countries
and emerging economies around the world.

It is important  to  foster  direct communication between  citizens  and  policy-makers. Through
online  forums,  virtual  discussion  rooms,  and  electronic  voting,  citizens  can  express  their
views, directly question the decision-makers, and so contribute with an  informed opinion to
the  democratic  process.  An  example  of  a  broad  online  consultation  is  the  e-Vote  website,
which was running during the Greek Presidency of the Council in the first half of 200310. At
EU  level,  'YourVoice  in  Europe'  offers  a  single  access  point  in  all  official  languages  for
Commission public consultation11.

One-stop  shopping  portals  are  gradually  becoming  the  norm
for citizen services. A ‘life-event’ orientation12 is often offered
on  the  portal,  bringing  together  all  relevant  information  for
citizens related to a specific stage in life13.

HELP 
is  a  comprehensive
citizen  portal  of  the  Federal
a
Chancellery 
winner  of  the  2003  eEurope
Award for eGovernment
(www.help.gv.at)

in  Austria, 

Such  citizen  portals  are  becoming  more  sophisticated  by
adding electronic identification, electronic payments (which raises questions about the choice
of  standards)  and  increased  interactivity.14.  In  particular  their  usage,  although  not  yet
widespread, is gradually growing. Although dedicated online services for disabled persons are
emerging15, access through alternatives to the PC such as digital television or mobile terminal
consistent with offline access so as to guarantee inclusion, is still relatively rare16.

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

EITO 2002. Note that a restrictive definition of ICT for eGovernment is used in EITO 2002.
http://evote.eu2003.gr/EVOTE/en/index.stm.
http://europa.eu.int/yourvoice
The term ‘life events’ refers to the government services needed at specific stages in life, e.g. having a
baby;  starting  /  leaving  school;  changing  employment  status;  being  a  victim  of  crime;  moving  home;
becoming disabled; retiring.
Examples are the Irish civil registry life events site (www.groireland.ie) which provides a.o. automatic
processing  of  child  benefits  claims;  and  CAT365,  www.cat365.net)  from  Spain  addressing  education
and training, finding a job (and an integrated business creation service).
E.g. the Finnish Centre for Pensions is offering a web-site in three languages on pensions, including a
service to identified insured persons who use a personal authentication card to access internet banking,
currently reaching some 80% of the working population (www.tyoelake.fi).
E.g. the French Handiplace.org portal, www.handiplace.org.
New technology can increase access but also raise productivity of service delivery, as illustrated by the
Dutch CareMore approach, where district nurses use PDAs for home visits to patients (www.sensire.nl).

10

                                                
The  European  Commission  has  taken  up  eGovernment  through  eCommission  (modernisation  of  internal
administration, improved communication with in particular Member States and other European institutions, and
better  public  services  to  citizens  and  business  )17.  Activities  that  directly  concern  citizens  include  online
availability of all legislation and other official Commission documents, and the introduction of Interactive Policy
Making for input to policy-making (spontaneous feedback and online consultation), which is part of the Better
Regulation approach. A next step is Europa 2nd Generation, a new generation of portals for a complete range of
thematic information and interactive services on EU policies and activities, hiding the organisational complexity
behind the scene.

4.1.2.

Services to businesses - boosting competitiveness in Europe

Today enterprises  in Europe work within a regulatory
regime  that  includes  frequent  and  mandatory  dealings
with  government,  often  with  separate  administrative
bodies.  This  places  a  high  administrative  and  time
burden on enterprises. eGovernment clearly has a role
to play here by providing a ‘single point of access’ for
administrative 
requirements.
Examples  are  public  procurement,  customs  and
taxation, 
geographical
information, and information on registration of a new company and application of necessary
authorisations and permits.

Bremen Online Services
online  transactions  and  payments  in  a
secure  and  legally  binding  way  for
citizens,  businesses  and  intermediaries
(lawyers, 
etc.).
Significant savings have been achieved
on the  side  of  lawyers,  companies  and
administrations 
(www.bremer-online-
service.de).

contributions, 

information 

consultants, 

social 

provides

and 

tax 

An important aspect of eGovernment for business services is that more productive and higher
quality  service  provision  by  public  administrations  lead  to  increased  productivity  and
competitiveness in the private sector as well, by reducing the cost of the public service itself
as  well  as  transaction  costs  at  business  side  (time,  effort),  accompanied  by  fewer
administrative errors.

For  example,  results  reported  from  several  countries  in  operational  systems  of  electronic
customs handling are that the majority of declarations can be processed in a few minutes, with
24/7  availability  and  significant  quality  improvement18.  The  same  is  noted  with  electronic
VAT  obligations  that  are  being  developed  throughout  the  EU  and  similar  advantages  are
awaited  from  future  computerisation  of  excise  documents 
intra-community
movements19.

the 

in 

The sophistication of online services  (that  is,  going  beyond  mere  information  provision  and
also  supporting  interactivity  and  transactions)  has  made  more  progress  in  business  services
than in those to citizens20.

17

18

19

20

“Towards the eCommission: Implementation Strategy 2001-2005”, June 2001.
The Swedish Virtual Customs Office (www.customs-vip.info/eGov/) processes 90 % of all declarations
electronically  and  deals  through  automated  clearance  with  70%  of  the  declarations  within  3  minutes.
Polish  Integrated  Customs  Duty  and  Tax  System,  for  border  controls  and  customs  revenue,  achieved
error reduction by as much as a factor of 20 (www.krakow.uc.gov.pl/clogran.htm). The national public
procurement agency in Denmark has achieved through ETHICS electronic tendering a doubling of its
productivity  and  a  complete  elimination  of  complaints  (www.ski.dk/).  The  Romanian  eMarket
procurement system reports savings of 20% (www.e-licitatie.ro).
See also the Communication on a simple and paperless environment for customs and trade, COM(2003)
452, July 2003
Cap Gemini Ernst & Young (CGEY) survey for the European Commission, February 2003.

11

                                                
Some  online  services  for  business  are  now  moving  to  more  extensive  use  of  electronic
certificates.  Introducing  these  new  technologies  through  online  public  services  for  business
may  also  help  to  achieve  a  critical  mass,  e.g.  by  enhancing  their  use  in  electronic  public
procurement,  electronic  customs,  excise  and  tax  declarations,  or  by  eliminating  all  paper
flows  in  social  security  reporting.  More  generally,  electronic  interaction  with  authorities  is
seen as a road to ‘going digital’, in particular for SMEs.

4.1.3.

Services between administrations - strengthening cooperation

and 

eGovernment  policy  can  provide  ways  to  enable  a  structured  interaction  between  national,
regional  and  local  government  and  Community  institutions21,  even  though  many  obstacles
have  to  be  overcome,  including  competing  goals,  a  sometimes  confusing  abundance  of
regulations,  the  fragmentation  of  tasks  amongst  traditional  public  sector  institutions22  and  a
legacy of procedures and
ways of working.

Cooperation between administrations is the basis of the service provided by
Agencia  Tributaria,  another  eGovernment  Award  winner,  simplifying  and
speeding  up  the  provision  of  tax  certificates  to  citizens  through  secure
electronic  communications  between  the  administrations  and  with  citizens
(www.agenciatributaria.es).

local
Regional 
administrations  are  often
at  the  forefront  of  the
delivery of on-line public services23. Their efforts, including those through their associations,
have  been  instrumental  in  advancing  eGovernment.  eGovernment  development  at  regional
and  local  level  has  become  an  increasing  programme  priority  of  the  Structural  Funds,
representing about 30% of information society expenditure in Objective 1 regions and 20% in
Objective  2  regions.  The  revised  Structural  Funds  guidelines  for  information  society
investment,  2000-2006,  address  eGovernment  amongst  others  in  terms  of  reinforcing  the
demand-side  and  financing  of  eGovernment  content,  in  particular  for  local  and  regional
services.

In most Member States, national policies and programmes relating to the information society
and  eGovernment  affect  regional  planning  and  programming.  Effective  co-ordination  is
needed  between  the  national  and  regional  levels24  especially  in  inter-regional  networking,
cooperation between associations, and exchange of good practices.

4.2.

Issues and actions

A number of critical issues have to be addressed in order to scale up from individual examples
to widespread availability and use of online public services, and to enable more advanced and
user-friendly services. In the following paragraphs such high priority issues are analysed and
corresponding actions indicated (actions are in double-lined boxes). The intention is not to be
exhaustive, but rather to identify those key issues for which a common response is applicable.

21

22

23

24

Reflecting the White paper on European Governance.
E.g. the electronic social security system in Belgium involved process re-engineering with 2,000 social
security institutions at national, regional and local level (https://www.socialsecurity.be/).
Examples  are  ENTERPRISE-51,  a  single  office  providing  advice  and  services  to  companies  in  51
municipalities of the Italian province of Pordenone (www.amministrazionefuturo.com); “Service-Public
Local”, 
development
public 
(http://www.servicepubliclocal.net/) and the UK “3 Islands Partnership” provides electronic services for
both citizens and businesses to remote islands in Scotland with sparse populations, avoiding extensive
and expensive travel.
Salerno conference on Information Society and Regional Development (15-16 May 2003).

economic 

services 

France, 

local 

from 

for 

on 

12

                                                
Several of the actions identified below need to be followed up in close cooperation with the
respective EU programmes and with the European Network of Public Administrations.

4.2.1.

Inclusive access

Increased  participation  through  online  services  means  that  all  citizens  need  to  be  provided
with  full  opportunities  for  access.  Potential  barriers  include  lower  penetration  of  Internet  in
some  countries,  limited  service  availability,  and  the  lack  of  user-friendly  access  for  people
with disabilities or less IT-literacy.

The  principle  of  access  for  all  to  public  services  is  an  important  objective  of  public
administrations. Education and training are essential to ensure that citizens have the necessary
digital  literacy  to  be  able  to  take  full  advantage  of  the  services  offered  by  eGovernment.
Digital literacy is one of the priorities of the new eLearning programme25.

Participation  can  be  improved  if  services  can  be  accessed  through  a  choice  of  devices,
including  PC,  digital  TV,  mobile  terminal,  or  public  Internet  access  points,  alongside  the
usual physical, offline service provision.

Such  a  multi-platform  approach  is  essential  for  inclusion,  to  avoid  creating  a  new  societal
divide.  The  related  eEurope  2005  target  is  that  by  end  2004,  Member  States  should  have
ensured  that  basic  public  services  where  relevant,  exploit  the  potential  of  multi-platform
access.  The  European  Commission  (Interchange  of  Data  between  Administrations
programme, IDA) will carry out a study into the multi-platform approach in order to identify
best practices and guidelines in the delivery of eGovernment services.

Applying  ‘Design  for  All’  principles  will  enable  broadening  participation  of  citizens.  It  is
important to elaborate guidelines for the design and assessment of user interfaces and access
to  public  services.  As  part  of  eEurope  2002  Member  States  have  adopted  the  Web
Accessibility Initiative guidelines, which should now become an integral part of online public
services.

Inclusive  multi-platform  access  should  be  reinforced  in  national  eGovernment  action  plans,
supported by best practice exchange.

Internet  penetration  in  the  EU  has  increased  rapidly  since  the  Lisbon  European  Council  in
March  2000  (more  than  40%  of  households  and  90%  of  businesses  and  schools  are  now
connected). This increase is related to the introduction of new, more interactive services. This
then increases the need for faster Internet, i.e. for broadband. The transition from narrowband
networks to broadband networks is an important step towards more responsive public services
that offer richer, more informative interaction. Broadband also increases the time users spend
on Internet.

Fast  and  ‘always-on’  communication  is  also  a  condition  for  continuous  access  to  shared
information bases inside the administrations themselves. Therefore broadband is essential for
scaling up from a single good practice to widespread take-up throughout the administration.

The eEurope 2005 Action Plan sets ‘widespread availability and use of broadband by 2005’
as  an  important  objective.  The  Communication  “Electronic  Communication  :  Road  to  the

25

COM(2002) 751 of 19 December 2002.

13

                                                
Knowledge Economy”26 sets a target of half of Internet connections to be broadband by 2005.
Availability can be stimulated by interlinked supply-side and demand-side policies.

These  include  the  new  telecommunications  regulatory  framework  which  in  a  technology-
neutral  way  stimulates  competition  between  communication  networks.  Demand  aggregation
will strengthen the case for sustainable investments in broadband and in new platforms such
as digital television and 3G. The Commission will organise a workshop in Autumn 2003 on
local initiatives, including demand aggregation.

Most  of  demand-side  policies  in  eEurope  2005  are  not  specific  to  ‘broadband’  or  ‘multi-
platform’, but span all objectives. eEurope 2005 calls for all public administrations to connect
with  broadband  by  2005.  Demand-side  policies  should  also  assess  citizens  and  businesses’
response and experiences to the delivery of services through various channels27.

New, advanced forms of interactivity in public services, stimulated by broadband and multi-
platform access, should be addressed in EU R&D, piloting and implementation programmes.

4.2.2.

Trust and confidence

Public  services  can  be  offered  only  within  an  environment  where  trust  and  confidence
flourish. Such environment should always guarantee secure interaction and access for citizens
and businesses.

Protection of personal data, authentication, and identity management are primary issues where
no  public  service  should  ever  fail.  Public  institutions  should  always  ensure  that  digital
transactions  and  communications  are  secure  and  that  personal  data  will  remain  protected.
Citizens  should  always  be  able  to  control  access  to  their  personal  data,  and  how  these  data
have been stored, used, and accessed. Failure to ensure this may, in addition to breaching the
law,  entail  significant  social  and  economic  costs.  Only  data  that  are  necessary  for  the
fulfilment  of  the  respective  purpose  may  be  collected28.  To  this  end,  the  use  of  privacy
enhancing technologies should be favoured.

Privacy  enhancing  technologies  in  eGovernment  should  be  promoted,  a.o.  through  the
relevant EU programmes.

Data  protection,  network  and  information  security,  the  fight  against  cybercrime  and
dependability  are  prerequisites  for  a  properly-functioning 
information  society,  and
consequently core policy  issues  within  the  EU.  The  Commission  together  with  the  Member
States has launched a comprehensive strategy for these issues.

A  range  of  R&D  projects,  supported  by  the  EU  Fifth  Framework  Information  Society
Technologies  (IST)  programme  and  the  Sixth  Framework  programme  address  these  issues.
For  network  and  information  security  the  rapid  adoption  of  the  European  Network  and
Information Security Agency, now on the table of Council and European Parliament, will be
an important step forward.

26

27

28

COM(2003) 65, 11 February 2003.
See also Ministerial Declaration of eGovernment 2003 Conference.
The so-called data minimisation principle, as contained in the data protection Directive 95/46 EC.

14

                                                
The eEurope 2005 Action Plan also calls for the development of a ‘culture of security’. This is
as  relevant  for  the  public  sector  as  it  is  for  the  private  sector.  This  will  also  include  the
availability  of  a  secure  communications  environment  for  the  exchange  of  classified
information between the Commission and Member States, a task being carried out by IDA.

eGovernment  strategies  at  all  levels  should  advance  trust  and  confidence  in  public  services
and online democratic participation.

legislation,  where 

Significant  developments  in  electronic  identity  and
authentication  systems  have  taken  place  over  the
past few years. Access to citizen data must be in full
compliance  with  the  European  and  national  data
the  choice  of
protection 
technology  should  empower  citizens  as  much  as
possible to retain control of their personal data. However, realising efficient and personalised
services based on citizen data is often hampered by rigid administrative practices, competency
considerations  and  competing  systems.  In  most  countries  their  take-up  and  deployment  are
still in a relatively early  stage  and  experience is  being  built  up29.  This  is  therefore  the  right
time  to  enhance  cooperation  in  this  area  and  prepare  jointly  for  the  future,  given  also  the
scope and scale of the challenge.

E.g.  the  cities  of  Bologna,  Naestved,  Prato,
Saarbruecken and Sheffield improve the use
of  digitally  signatures  both  between  the
administration and its clients  and  inside  the
administration. Interoperability is ensured in
the eTEN SPES project.

Identity management in  the EU should be  advanced  by addressing interoperability issues  as
well as future needs while taking into account differences in legal and cultural practices and
the  EU  framework  for  data  protection.  EU  programmes  for  research  &  development,
deployment  and  implementation  should  contribute  coherently  (i.e.  FP6/IST30,  eTEN31,  and
IDA32).

4.2.3.

Better use of public sector information

Economic and social benefits can be generated from
re-using the content resources the public sector holds
in  areas  such  as  geographical  information,  tourist
information,  meteorological  information,  statistics
etc. This will not only contribute to economic growth
and job-creation, but will also increase the choice and
quality of services for citizens.

and 

interactive  maps 

Digital Cartography in South Tyrol, Italy
Information
provides  a  Geographic 
System 
for
construction and environmental planning
taking  into  account  natural  occurrences
the
such  as  earthquakes.  Similarly 
Portuguese Seixal municipality promotes
the use of GIS data for civil servants and
technicians (srvweb.cm-seixal.pt).

There  are,  at  the  moment,  considerable  barriers
present in the European market that make it difficult to launch information services based on
public-sector information and covering different European countries. The rules and practices
for  the  re-use  of  public  sector  content  resources  differ  widely  between  Member  States.  In
addition, different standards and the multiplicity of languages make it difficult to fully exploit
the potential.

29

30

31

32

In  two-thirds  of  cases  authentication  of  citizens  is  still  by  password  and  user-id  only  (e-Forum,  June
2002).
For eGovernment R&D in FP6/IST see http://www.cordis.lu/ist/directorate_c/.
eTEN,  europa.eu.int/information_society/programmes/eten/,  is  the  trans-European  networks  e-services
programme.
For IDA see http://europa.eu.int/ISPO/ida/jsps/index.jsp?fuseAction=home.

15

                                                
To address the differences between the legal provisions in the Member States the Commission
proposed a directive on the re-use of public sector documents33. The conclusions of the 2003
European Spring Council call for an adoption of this directive by the end of 2003. Ministers
expressed their commitment and invited the Commission to enhance activities in this area34.

A swift adoption and transposition of the Directive on the re-use of public sector documents
should  be  achieved.  Pilot  projects  that  ease  cross-border  barriers  and  the  spread  of  good
practices throughout the EU should be promoted.

Such pilot projects could be part of the follow-on to the eContent programme and could draw
upon  the  experience  gathered  in  the  IDA  programme  and  the  IST  priority  of  the  Sixth
Framework Programme.

4.2.4.

Public procurement

One  area  where  significant  gains  can  be  achieved  is  public  procurement.  Traditional  public
procurement  operations  are  complex,  time-
consuming  and  resource-intensive,  and  thus
contribute  to  significant  productivity  losses.
The  use  of  ICT  in  public  procurement  can
raise  efficiency,  improve  the  quality  and
value  for  money  of  public  purchases,  and
generate  significant  savings  for  tax-payers
(see box). It can contribute to better relations
with  suppliers,  higher  user  satisfaction,  better  utilisation  of  human  resources  in  the
procurement  process  and  improved  auditability  of  public  expenditure.  To  achieve  such
benefits,  fundamental  changes  are  required  in  the  public  sector  procurement  environment
within administrations and in the relations between administrations and potential suppliers.

In the UK, for example, the Office of Government
Commerce aims to save € 350 million over 3 years
for central civil government purchases through the
its  e-procurement  strategy.
implementation  of 
Similarly, the Irish government hopes to save over
€ 400 million over 5  years or an estimated 2%  of
procurement expenditure in the public sector.

The  absence  of  clear  Community  rules  has  until  now  been  an  obstacle  to  the  take-up  of
electronic  public  procurement  in  Europe.  The  forthcoming  final  adoption  of  the  legislative
package of public procurement Directives, which includes specific rules on electronic public
procurement,  should  be  a  turning  point  for  the  spread  of  electronic  public  procurement  in
Europe. eGovernment services supporting and facilitating the interaction between businesses
and governments, such  as the provision of certificates in digital form and  the  availability of
electronic signatures across Europe, can contribute positively to the switch from paper-based
to electronic procurement.

Adoption  of  the  new  procurement  legislation  provides  a  window  of  opportunity  for
modernising procurement in the public sector. A Community approach integrating the Internal
Market dimension is crucial to prevent potential fragmentation of the procurement market due
to  incompatible  electronic  procurement  systems  and  standards  across  Europe,  and  to  avoid
imbalances  in  economic  development  due  to  slower  penetration  of  the  new  technologies  in
certain countries or regions.

The Commission is considering proposing in 2004 a comprehensive three-year Action Plan to
accompany the implementation of the new provisions on electronic public procurement.

33

34

COM(2002) 207.
Ministerial Declaration, eGovernment 2003 Conference, Como, 7-8 July 2003.

16

                                                
It will set out a strategy and identify all legislative and non-legislative measures required to
eliminate obstacles to cross-border electronic public procurement and ensure interoperability
of electronic procurements systems. To encourage co-ordination between Member States and
prepare the ground for the Action Plan, the Commission has set up a working group. Within
the framework of the IDA programme, specific support actions are underway.

4.2.5.

Strengthening the Internal Market and European Citizenship through Pan-European
Services

Citizens are free to work and re-locate within the EU. Enterprises trade and carry out business
across  the  Union.  They  then  often  have  to  interact  with  national  public  administrations,  in
their  own  or  another  Member  State.  The  further  development  of  the  knowledge-based
economy, the deepening of the internal market, particularly for services, and the enlargement
of  the  Union,  all  increase  the  demand  for  cross-border  and  even  pan-European  interaction
with  public  administrations.  Examples  are  in  access  to  general  government  information,
compliance with regulations, and exchange of administrative transactions between institutions
belonging to different countries35.

Some pan-European services are already in place and continuously evolving.

EURES  and  PLOTEUS  are  pan-European  services36,  that  indicate  the  potential  of  EU-wide  employment  and
related  educational  services,  that  is,  where  a  citizen  may  wish  to  know  what  employment  vacancies  exist  in
certain Member States, whether their qualifications will be recognised, what educational facilities are available,
etc.  The  internal  market  service  SOLVIT  tackles  the  hurdle  of  citizens  and  enterprises  in  dealing  with
administrative obstacles in cross-border procedures. Initiatives including Dialogue with Citizens and Business37,
and the portal of the EU administration38, will form the basis for the future Your Europe portal, providing access
to a wide range of information and services from EU and national administrations.

Pan-European  services, when being developed, should look at potential problems  and try to
avoid them. One such problem can be, when services have been developed from the Member
State’s national perspective and tradition (e.g. language) alone, their access may be difficult
for  citizens  and  enterprises  in  other  Member  States.  Another  issue  could  be  that  their
development  inadvertently  results  in  new  barriers  to  the  internal  market  due  to  technical  or
procedural reasons39.

Ideally  both  citizens  and  business  would  have  a  one-stop  access  to  administrations  (‘single
face’) that is consistent  in its service  delivery across  Member  States.  An  example  would be
the case of VAT obligations, where traders more and more often have to register and declare

35

36

37

38

39

An example of a cross-border service is Transcards that permit citizens in the Thiérache region to use
the most suitable health facilities, regardless of whether they live on the Belgian or French side of the
border.
Resp.  http://europa.eu.int/eures  and  http://www.ploteus.net.  These  services  are  supported  by  the  IDA
programme and managed by the Commission’s Directorate-General for Education and Culture.
http://europa.eu.int/citizensrights and http://europa.eu.int/business
Being  implemented  through  IDA  as  a  point  of  access  to  pan-European  eGovernment  services,
http://europa.eu.int/public-services.
For example, the risk  of an electronic certificate issued in one Member State not being accepted for the
electronic  signature  of  a  contract  with  the  public  administration  of  another  Member  State  could  be  a
barrier to cross-border participation in electronic public procurement.

17

                                                
VAT in several Member States, and where therefore a "one-stop" access in one Member State
only would bring significant benefits40.

eGovernment  services  should  be  designed  to  be  open  to  users  in  other  Member  States  and
accessible seamlessly, regardless of whether the service is under the responsibility of a local,
regional or national public administration, or a European institution or agency.

The  provision  of  common  pan-European  services  can  be  a  sensitive  issue.  Many  Member
States require that government services are provided by the administrative body closest to the
customer, which may be at the local or regional level, in line with subsidiarity. This requires a
high  degree  of  cooperation  between  administrations  across  the  EU,  involving  the  private
sector as well41.

Pan-European services can give a substantial impetus to the Internal Market and its associated
freedoms, as well as to European Citizenship, provided that there is inclusion of the needs of
cross-border  users,  co-operation  of  Member  States’  administrations,  the  provision  of
interoperable infrastructures, and provision of specific public services at the European level.

The  task  is  now  for  Member  States  and  European  Institutions  to  ensure  that  pan-European
services  are  defined,  developed,  deployed,  implemented,  enriched  with  content,  and
promoted.

Rapid adoption of the proposed IDAbc programme42 will enable the implementation of pan-
European  services  that  help  implementing  Community  legislation,  for  administrations,
businesses and citizens.

Rapid adoption is also needed of the proposal for the revision of the Financial Regulations for
eTEN,  for  an  increase  of  the  funding  ceiling  to  30%  to  accelerate  deployment  of  pan-
European services.

4.2.6.

Interoperability

In Europe, the provision of public services is still often rather fragmented and people have to
go from one ‘counter’ to another (whether physical or on the web). Companies and  citizens
would much benefit from public services that are provided seamlessly online43 and for which
they do not need to know the different departments involved.

40

41

42

43

Such  a  system  has  already  been  put  in  place  for  value-added-tax  on  electronic  services  from  third
country  operators  since  the  1st  July  2003  (Directive  2002/38/EC)  and  could  be  extended  to  a  wider
scope (see also the open consultation on "Your voice in Europe").
Common  online  services  at  the  European  level  need  not  necessarily  be  provided  by  European
institutions. They could be provided by trade  associations,  professional  bodies,  or  in  partnership  with
the private sector. An example is the one-stop-shop (guichet unique) procedure for satellite licences and
authorisations provided by CEPT (Conférence Européenne des Postes et Télécommunications).
COM(2003)  406,  Interoperable  Delivery  of  pan-European  eGovernment  Services 
to  Public
Administrations, Businesses and Citizens, 8 July 2003; an Advisory Board involving representatives of
the  private  and  public  sector  is  to  be  set  up  in  the  context  of  IDA  to  assist  in  the  identification  and
deployment of pan-European services.
That  is,  the  service  is  provided  without  any  break-points  regardless  of  the  number  of  different
administrative systems or administrative bodies involved.

18

                                                
They  also  prefer  to  have  services  and  information  tailored  to  their  needs  and  requirements,
while  knowing  that  their  right  to  privacy  is  protected  and  services  themselves  are  secure.
However,  personalised  services  require  integration  and  sharing  of  processes  and  knowledge
across  departments  and  institutions.  This  requires  IT  systems  of  the  various  participating
administrative bodies to be interconnected and information and administrative processes to be
‘joined up’, i.e. they must ‘interoperate’.

Interoperability is the means by which this inter-linking of systems, information and ways of
working  will occur: within or between administrations, nationally or across Europe, or with
the enterprise sector.

At  the  technical  level,  open  standards  can  help  to  achieve  such  integration.  In  addition,
administrations are building up experience with open source considering intrinsic aspects such
as cost and security, and benefits from externalities including ease of integration.

Exchange of experience in the use of open standards and open source amongst administrations
should be promoted amongst others through the relevant EU programmes.

But  interoperability  is  not  just  a  technical  issue  of  linking  up  computer  networks:  it  also
concerns  organisational  issues,  such  as  co-ordinating  processes  that  not  only  span  intra-
organisational  boundaries,  but  also  interwork  with  partner  organisations  that  may  well  have
different internal organisation and operations.

Failure to put in place interoperable eGovernment systems will have both economic and social
costs. These include: static unresponsive public administrations that are expensive to run and
incapable  of  implementing  policy  promptly;  inability  to  develop  value  added  eGovernment
services; higher costs, greater administrative burden and competitive disadvantage relative to
local firms (e.g. inability to participate in public e-procurement activities), and hampering the
proper functioning of the Internal Market.

For  the  successful  development  of  pan-European  eGovernment  services,  policy  should  be
developed  that  addresses  the  European  dimension  of  interoperability44.  Agreement  on
common standards and specifications is essential to support life event and information sharing
eGovernment services, as well as R&D into interoperability for networked organisations that
in  future  will  deliver  new  and  innovative  public  services.  Most  Member  States  are  already
addressing  this  challenge  by  adopting  national  ‘eGovernment  interoperability  frameworks’.
This  is  being  complemented  at  European  level  by  the  development  of  the  European
Interoperability  Framework45,  and  at  policy  level  by  the  Commission  staff  working  paper
‘Linking up Europe: the importance of interoperability for eGovernment services’.

The  “interoperability  framework  in  support  of  the  delivery  of  pan-European  eGovernment
services to citizens and enterprises” as referred to in eEurope 2005, is to be adopted in its first
version by the end of 2003.

44

45

One  Member  State’s  administration  should  be  able  to  access  an  information  resource  of  another
Member State’s administration to validate the status of an enterprise or to check the eligibility for social
welfare of a citizen from another Member State,  with the same ease as it could do this  for  nationally
registered  enterprises  or  its  own  citizens.  Similarly,  the  technical  and  semantic  interoperability  of
geographic 
intra-agency  co-operation,
environmental monitoring and the co-ordination of disaster relief.
A draft version will be available for public consultation on the IDA website.

information,  for  example,  would  enhance 

trans-border 

19

                                                
4.2.7. Organisational change

The introduction of  ICT  is  only  one  ingredient  of  eGovernment.  Organisational  change  and
acquisition of new skills with a change of mindset are equally important. eGovernment often
requires  significant  changes  in  the  way  public  administrations  operate,  administrative
processes are executed, policies are developed and budgets are controlled.

The  change  towards  an  organisation  according  to  the  concept  that  the  user  is  at  the  centre
(customer  orientation),  which  was  already  at  the  heart  of  the  New  Public  Management
approach, is reinforced by eGovernment and made visible at the front-office in personalised
online services, a one-stop approach and a life- (or business-) event orientation. Future forms
organisations  may  have  to  be  increasingly  agile  and  flexible  such  as  to  respond  better  to
citizen needs.

Reorganisation  within  the  administrations  may  require  process  and  procedure  redesign,
training  of  personnel,  the  development  of  new  skills  and  competencies,  adaptation  of  local
rules and legislation and  new  employee management models. ICT  is an important means  to
improve  access  to  and  quality  of  education  and  training.  The  eLearning  programme  2004-
2006 has been proposed to support this process.

The proper management of change is a prerequisite for the establishment of a service-oriented
mentality  that  most  citizens  and  business  desire,  while  avoiding  disruptions  in  the  current
service  provisioning.  This  should  include  assessment  of  the  change  process:  how  public
organisations move from the early stages of eGovernment (information and interaction) to the
more advanced stages (transaction and transformation).

The  European  Public  Administration  Network  (of  Ministers  of  Public  Administration)  will
propose organisational recommendations and will enable the exchange of best practices46.

The  EU  FP6  programme  will  support  R&D  into  the  combination  of  technological  and
organisational  innovation  in  public  administrations,  towards  a  European  Research  Area  in
eGovernment.

4.2.8.

Performance and benefits of eGovernment

eGovernment  can  contribute  to  improving  the  productivity  of  public  administrations.
Productivity  growth  can  be  defined  as  more  or  better  or  faster  output  for  a  given  input.
However, in the public sector there are definition and measurement problems for inputs and
outputs.

One problem is the pricing of public services, which is often not directly related to the inputs
(taxation is not specific to the service provided). Also, as many online services are to a large
extent information-based, they follow the rules of information economics in which marginal
prices are approaching zero, and are thus not an indicator of the value of the service, while the
operational  costs  of  initial  information  development  and  maintaining  information  over  its
lifecycle, which can be significant, still have to covered.

46

The  Directors-General  of  Public  Administrations  in  the  EU  have  also  made  available  the  Common
Assessment  Framework,  which  is  a  tool  for  organisational  self-assessment  with  a  view  to  quality
management.

20

                                                
Another  problem  is  that  prices  are  not  determined  through  market  mechanisms,  since
generally  there  is  no  competition  when  the  service  is  delivered.  Information  economics,
however, teaches  that there  are  other  mechanisms that can ensure performance  and  to  some
extent substitute for price. These include contractual mechanisms and quality indicators, such
as expressed by user satisfaction and which may be represented by trusted labels.

Likewise, where there is a lack of competition in providing services to the public  or  even  a
monopoly situation, public scrutiny can be a replacement.

The focus of indicators until now has largely been on supply indicators (such as the number of
services online) rather than on the user and usage.

New  approaches  to  benchmarking  in  eGovernment  are  needed  as  well  as  research  into  the
economics of eGovernment with a view to a better assessment of benefits and performance of
eGovernment.

This will also assist in better defining future concrete targets for the modernisation of public
administrations and improved public services and in assessing the outcomes and impact of the
actions identified before.

5.

AN EGOVERNMENT ROADMAP

eGovernment can deliver many benefits but there are also many barriers to be overcome. Its
full-scale  implementation  is  not  easy  and  requires  commitment  from  the  very  top  of  public
administrations and, indeed, from the political level.

The eGovernment roadmap proposed here includes the actions identified before. These are to
be  complemented  by  two  horizontal  actions,  namely  reinforcing  the  exchange  of  good
practice  across  the  various  aspects  of  eGovernment  and  leveraging  investment  in
eGovernment  in  Europe.  This  roadmap  aims  at  reinforcing  and  implementing  the  eEurope
2005 Action Plan and thus makes a significant contribution to the Lisbon strategy.

5.1.

Reinforcing the exchange of good practice

In  order  to  deepen  and  strengthen  the  eEurope  approach  for  leveraging  good  practices  a
further reinforcement of exchange of good practice in eGovernment is necessary47.

Exchange of good practice has already demonstrated its usefulness. Best practices encompass
technological, organisational, legal and training elements, they require long-term commitment
of  all  key  actors  involved,  and  they  illustrate  tangible  benefits  and  results.  Exchange  of
experience and  replication of best practices can bring cost-savings in moving to broad take-
up. It also prepares for future interoperability and interworking between administrations.

While  demonstrating  the  state  of  the  art,  best  practices  also  point  to  new  requirements  for
regulatory 
frameworks,  change  management,  and  organisation  of  work  within
administrations, and generally help to identify research challenges and form a contribution to
establishing a European Research Area in eGovernment.

47

See also the Ministerial Declaration of the Como eGovernment 2003 conference.

21

                                                
The eEurope Awards for eGovernment have successfully  stimulated best practice  exchange.
eTEN and IDA give specific emphasis on replicating good practices at trans-European level.
However, continuity is a key factor in the process of exchanging good practices.

What  is  needed  however,  is  to  avoid  a  mere  one-off  "copying"  of  an  awarded  application
which  might  not  be  suitable  in  another  socio-cultural  context.  A  framework  is  needed  that
provides,  amongst  others,  for  continuity,  establishes  mutual  interaction  between  current  EU
programmes  and  initiatives  related  to  eGovernment,  addresses  legal  and  other  aspects  of
reusing good practice and ownership of eGovernment systems to implement the solution.

Through a comprehensive framework the exchange of good practices in eGovernment will be
reinforced.

By being open for wider participation such a framework can also stimulate learning from and
transfer  of  good  practices  internationally.  It  can  thereby  become  a  contribution  to  global
cooperation  in  eGovernment,  which  is  a  priority  in  the  World  Summit  on  the  Information
Society48. In this respect, in the future economic co-operation and development aid could be
considered with EU partners, notably in relation to capacity-building.

5.2.

Leveraging investment

A  range  of  European  initiatives  and  programmes  exist  that  can  address  eGovernment,  from
research  to  implementation.  These  comprise  parts  of  the  Sixth  Framework,  eTEN  and  IDA
programmes, as well as the investment in regional priorities through the Structural Funds.

Altogether this investment at European level is small compared to the total investment that is
being done – or should be done –in eGovernment.

As mentioned before, the annual spending in the EU on ICT in public administration is about
€30  billion,  of  which  a  fast-growing  proportion,  currently  some  €5  billion,  is  spent  on
eGovernment-related  ICT.  That  ICT  spending  should  be  accompanied  by  a  much  larger
investment in organisation and human resources. For comparison: research in companies has
shown  that  the  total  investment  in  such  ‘organisational  capital’  can  be  up  to  ten  times  the
initial ICT investment, before the full benefits are delivered.

Therefore the total investment needed is likely to be several tens of billions each year. Such
investment  is  necessary  to realise the  potential of  eGovernment,  in particular that  Europe  is
equipped  with  a  world-class  public  sector  which  fully  contributes  to  the  Lisbon  objectives
through new and better public services for citizens and businesses.

Support at European level should therefore aim at  enabling maximum  leverage of the much
larger  investment  at  Member  State  level.  By  creating  synergies  across  Member  States
duplicate spending can be avoided. However, the extent of increased efficiencies needs to be
quantified.

A first step to increasing the synergy and impact of the EU programmes will be to provide a
one-stop approach (common entry point) for the potential users of these programmes.

48

COM(2003)  271,  Communication  on  the  World  Summit  on  the  Information  Society,  19  May  2003;
Ministerial Declaration of the Como eGovernment 2003 conference.

22

                                                
That is, a single entry point for information and questions related to EU programmes that can
support eGovernment. In the longer run further synergies could be explored, for example by
lifecycle support to projects, cooperation on work-programme development, and joint use of
inputs from advisory bodies.

In this way the current activities at EU level can prepare the ground for more coherence and
savings in overall Member States’ spending.

The  role  of  a  shared  approach  amongst  Member  States  to  with  a  view  to  supporting  and
boosting investment in eGovernment should be explored.

5.3.

Meeting the eEurope 2005 targets

The eEurope 2005 Action Plan provides the reference point for commitment to advancing the
information society at European level.

In terms of instruments it relies upon exchanges of best practice, initiatives from the private
sector  and  in  Member  States  at  all  levels,  and  leveraging  the  available  resources  and
programmes at EU level, with overall strategic monitoring by the eEurope Steering Group.

eEurope 2005 has formulated specific eGovernment targets for:

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

Broadband connections for public administrations

Interoperability framework for pan-European services

Interactive public services (accessible for all, multi-platform)

Electronic public procurement

Public Internet Access Points

Culture and tourism e-services

Work in most of these areas is supported by the actions already mentioned. By 2004, the mid-
term review of eEurope will report on progress. In order to maintain and accelerate progress
towards these targets and provide strategic guidance for eGovernment in line with the present
Communication, the Commission will continue to consult public and private sector actors.

5.4.

Conclusions

Already today eGovernment is proving that it can help public administrations to become more
productive and offer personalised services for all, in an open and transparent way.

The  benefits  of  eGovernment  can  go  far  beyond  the  early  achievements  of  online  public
services. In this it is essential is that the public sector adapts its organisation and skills for a
user-centred approach in which technology is serving people.

There  are,  however,  many  barriers  and  obstacles  to  overcome  and  sizeable  investments  are
needed.  Change  processes  in  organisation  and  culture  take  time:  it  can  take  several  years
before the combined investment in ICT, organisation and skills deliver the full benefits. The
transformation of public administrations that eGovernment entails will encounter resistance.

23

Therefore  strong  political  leadership  and  commitment  are  needed,  guided  by  a  long-term
vision of the public sector’s contribution to Europe in the knowledge society.

This  Communication  presents  a  coherent  roadmap  comprising  actions  in  eGovernment  that
are  already  ongoing  or  planned  as  well  as  new  actions.  These  latter,  e.g.  in  identity
management,  the  next  step  in  pan-European  services,  reinforcing  best  practice  exchange,
exploring shared approaches, etc., are expected to build upon and strengthen work going on
and open up perspectives for future initiatives in eGovernment.

Forward thinking and innovation should be combined with concrete deliverables and results
in the shorter term. Exchange of good practice and cooperation between administrations at all
levels can accelerate adoption and bring savings by re-using proven concepts and solutions.

A coherent approach to eGovernment by the current EU initiatives and programmes should be
pursued, to leverage national, regional and local investments and accelerate the availability of
pan-European services for citizens and businesses.

Member  States  in  particular  are  called  upon  to  provide  political  leadership  and  reinforce
commitment at all levels of government, and thereby contribute to providing Europeans with
a  world-class  public  administration  that  makes  its  full  contribution  to  the  Lisbon  goals
through high quality and innovative public services for all.

24

Annex –
Overview of Actions

Action

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

(10)

(11)

(12)

Inclusive  multi-platform  access  to  be  reinforced  in  national
eGovernment action plans, supported by best practice exchange.

Time

Resp

End 2003

Council

New,  advanced  forms  of  interactivity  in  public  services,  based
on broadband and multi-platform access, to be addressed in EU
R&D, piloting and implementation programmes.

2004

Com

Privacy  enhancing  technologies  in  eGovernment  should  be
promoted, a.o. through the relevant EU programmes.

2003-

Council +
Com

eGovernment  strategies  at  all  levels  to  promote  trust  and
in  online  democratic
confidence 
participation.

in  public  services  and 

2004

Council

Identity  management  in  the  EU  to  be  advanced,  addressing
interoperability and future needs, taking  into  account  legal  and
cultural practices, coherent contribution of FP6, eTEN, IDA.

2004

Com

Swift adoption and transposition  of  the  Directive  on the re-use
of public sector documents. Pilot projects that ease cross-border
barriers and the spread of good practices throughout the EU.

2003

EP +
Council

Proposal  for  a  comprehensive  three-year  Action  Plan  to
accompany the implementation of the new provisions on public
e-procurement.

2004

Com

eGovernment  services  to  be  designed  to  be  open  to  users  in
other Member States and seamlessly accessible.

2003-

Council

Member  States  and  the  European  Institutions  to  ensure  that
pan-European  services  are  defined,  developed,  deployed,
implemented, enriched with content, and promoted.

End  2003
(defined)

Council +
Com

Adoption of the proposal for  a  Decision  on the  IDA  follow-up
programme,  IDAbc  in  support  of  the  deployment  of  pan-
European services by European public administrations.

End 2003

Council +
EP

Rapid adoption of the proposal for the revision of the Financial
Regulations  for  eTEN  (funding  ceiling  of  30%)  to  accelerate
deployment of pan-European services.

Before  July
2004

Council +
EP

Exchange of experience in the use  of  open  standards  and open
source  amongst  administrations  to  be  promoted  amongst  other
through the relevant EU programmes.

2003-

Com

25

(13)

(14)

(15)

(16)

(17)

(18)

The  “interoperability  framework  in  support  of  the  delivery  of
pan-European eGovernment services to citizens and enterprises”
as referred to in eEurope 2005, to be adopted in its first version.

End 2003

Com

technological  and  organisational 

The EU FP6 programme will support R&D into the combination
in  public
of 
administrations, 
in
eGovernment

towards  a  European  Research  Area 

innovation 

2003-

Com

New  approaches  to  benchmarking  and  research  into  the
economics of eGovernment for improved assessment.

2003-

Council  +
Com

Through  a  comprehensive  framework  the  exchange  of  good
practices in eGovernment will be reinforced.

End 2003

Com

First  phase  of  one-stop  shopping  approach  to  eGovernment
activities in Commission.

End 2003

Com

The  role  of  a  shared  approach  amongst  Member  States  with  a
view to supporting and boosting investment in eGovernment to
be explored.

2003-

Council  +
Com

26