The 52 finalists for the 4th European eGovernment Awards set up their exhibition stands yesterday [18 November 2009] in full preparation for the 5th Ministerial eGovernment Conference, which starts today [19 November 2009]. The European eGovernment Awards ceremony, acknowledging the best of the best in eGovernment solutions, will take place this evening (at 18:00-18:30 CET); it is the culmination of the 4th European eGovernment Awards scheme.

Under the title "Teaming up for the eUnion", the conference expects to bring together over 1 000 prominent public and private decision-makers and experts from across Europe and further afield.

 Prior to the official opening, the day of 18 November 2009 has been full of special events: the Ministerial Meeting and Declaration, the final phase of the awards evaluation and a special ministerial tour at the finalist exhibition.

European decision-makers responsible for eGovernment in Europe, as well as directors, senior managers and practitioners from public administrations, ICT industry, academia and NGOs are taking part in this fifth edition of the biennial conference.

The finalist exhibition highlights European Good Practices

The European eGovernment Awards Finalist Exhibition received special attention yesterday when participants at the Ministerial meeting - key decision-makers from the Member States and the European Commission - visited the finalists' exhibition stands. During this ministerial tour, finalists received their official certificates from the representatives of their countries' ministries responsible for eGovernment.

The 3rd and final evaluation phase also took place yesterday, with the members of the jury visiting all 52 finalist stands.

The exhibition, hosted by the European Commission's Directorate-General for Information Society and Media and the Swedish Presidency of the EU, showcases the 52 finalists and forms an integral part of the conference. Contribution by the finalists is vital to the success of the conference, demonstrating achievements at grass-roots level since the last review in 2007 and pointing to innovations and emerging challenges for which cooperation should be encouraged at  European level.

Exhibition stands are grouped according to the year's awards categories:

• Category 1: eGovernment supporting the Single Market
• Category 2a: eGovernment empowering citizens
• Category 2b: eGovernment empowering businesses
• Category 3: eGovernment enabling administrative efficiency and effectiveness

Ministerial Meeting and Declaration for future eGovernment policy

A Ministerial Meeting with EU Ministers responsible for eGovernment took place yesterday to discuss and prepare a Ministerial Declaration, which will set out a joint vision and policy programme for eGovernment for the period up to 2015.

The Ministerial Declaration will be presented jointly by the Swedish Minister for Local Government and Financial Markets, Mats Odell, and the European Commissioner for Information Society and Media, Viviane Reding today, the first day of the Conference.

Background information

The European eGovernment Awards is an initiative of the European Commission organised biennially to coincide with regular high-level EU eGovernment conferences. The purpose of the Awards is to support the implementation of European eGovernment policy and strategies and facilitate good practice exchange. In this context, since their launch in 2003, the Awards have been promoting the best ICT-based solutions for public services in Europe.

 

Further information:

• European eGovernment Awards website 
• Awards Helpdesk
• Picture gallery

• Email contact for press queries  
• Phone contact for press queries: +32-2-299 45 31 or +32-2-295 09 81
• 5th Ministerial eGovernment Conference, 19-20 November 2009, Malmö, Sweden