Moving into the e-government era – the example of Estonia

Moving into the e-government era – the example of Estonia

Moving into the e-government era

E-government, digital communication between citizens, companies and state institutions represents an ambitious goal: to make communication with public authorities and administrations more timesaving, more transparent and more secure.

Political decision-makers are faced with the task of initiating the development of online-based transactions with public authorities and orientating e-government projects more strongly towards the needs of internet users.

Estonia, the most northerly of the Baltic states, has played a pioneering role in this context. The country has a highly developed digital infrastructure with a multitude of innovative administrative services that offer a clear added value as compared to the standard visit to the public authority.

Due to special historical framework conditions as well as a small population “e-Estonia” is seen by many as a successful model sui generis. Nonetheless, the Estonian strategies and concepts and the practical experiences in their implementation are of particular value for political decision-makers from other countries.Onthebasisofextensiveinterviews, eightcentral areas of action were identified in which decision-makers from politics can have a stronger influence on the success of public service delivery. The focus was on the fundamental transferability of the recommendations.