The fourth Ministerial eGovernment Conference, an event co-organised by the European Commission and the Portuguese Government, started on 19 September and will run until 21 September at Feira Internacional de Lisboa (FIL), in Lisbon. At the same time an Informal Council of Ministers will be held on the same subject. Tomorrow the European eGovernment Awards are to be announced, with 3 Portuguese projects (Évora Distrito Digital, eGAIANIMA and @INPI) among a total of 52 finalists from 20 countries.
The conference, on the subject “Reaping the Benefits of eGovernment”, has the participation of 36 countries and will cover four central issues connected to information and communication technology (ICT) and public services: better public services for growth and jobs, participation and transparency, social impact and cohesion, and effective and efficient administration. These issues will be debated in the various panels that have been included in the programme for 20 and 21 September. There are also plans to hold five workshops, looking at the experiences and results of eGovernment initiatives in Europe.
Portugal has presented the second largest number of initiatives for entry in the European eGovernment Awards, with a total of 27 projects, 3 of which have reached the final stage. The project Évora Distrito Digital (Évora Digital District) (EDD) is an initiative included in the Digital Regions and Cities project, which aims to modernise local Public Administration, give impetus to economic development, promote the information and knowledge society and fight info-exclusion. @ INPI, another finalist, is a free, 24 hour service that guarantees online access to information on industrial property, ensuring public transparency for the activities of Instituto Nacional de Propriedade Industrial (National Industrial Property Institute). The final project is eGAIANIMA, an online tool set up to facilitate and promote interoperability between pupils, parents, teachers and school managers.
In the previous edition of the eGovernment awards, the Portuguese pilot project, Compras Públicas (Public Purchases) was one of the winners, having been distinguished for best practise.
Consult:
- European eGovernment Awards https://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?contentId=473994
Further information:
- 4th Ministerial eGovernment Conference ? website http://www.megovconf-lisbon.gov.pt/index.php?lang=en
- eGovernment Observatory http://ec.europa.eu/idabc/egovo
- European Commission: eGovernment Exchange http://ec.europa.eu/egov/
- Epractice.eu http://www.epractice.eu/home