At the high-level conference 'Borderless eGovernment Services for Europeans', the delegates discussed the development of eGovernment services in Europe and the challenges it is likely to face in the years ahead. The conference took place in Poznań, Poland on 17 and 18 November 2011.

During the event, experts representing the scientific, business and political communities debated the greatest challenges confronting eGovernment in the European Union. They emphasised that European citizens and companies required further development of cross-border eGovernment services. Making eServices readily accessible to every European, regardless of birthplace and residence, was a prominent topic in the conference.

The conference was attended by Michał Boni, Minister in the Chancellery of the Polish Prime Minister, Neelie Kroes, Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for the Digital Agenda for Europe and Maroš Šefčovič, Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for Interinstitutional Relations and Administration, as well as by ministers from 35 European countries. In all it brought together some 800 participants from around the world, including representatives of national, regional and local administrations, the business community, NGOs and experts.

The conference was followed and debated across Europe via social networking sites. Almost 200 000 web users from across Europe participated in a parallel discussion. In their view, priority should be given to the development of trans-border services in the realms of healthcare, justice, public tenders, business start-up and education.

An informal meeting of ministers tasked with eGovernment issues was held on the first day of the conference, and was attended by Vice-President Kroes. The ministers considered the outlook for international recognition of electronic documents, trans-border public administration services and interoperability of public administration eServices. The continuation and expansion of large scale eGovernment pilot projects was another important topic. During the ministers' meeting, Poland and Germany signed a letter of intent on cooperation in sharing experiences connected with the introduction of electronic identity documents.

The conference was accompanied by an exhibition of the latest achievements in the area of eGovernment services and applications in Europe. Minister Boni and Vice-President Kroes, who toured the exhibition, saw among others the presentations of large-scale European projects (LSPs). The Polish e-Court, permitting electronic conduct of court proceedings, also attracted considerable interest.

Further information:

• Original news article - egov2011.pl
• Related ePractice event - PL: 6th European Ministerial eGovernment Conference
• Background information - ePractice eGovernment Factsheet for Poland