GR: 81 services for citizens go digital

eurodyn1 — Fri, 24 May 2013 12:14:52 +0000

2 - Summary:

In May 2013, the Deputy Minister of Administrative Reform and Electronic Governance, Mr Manousos Voloudakis, disseminated to all Citizen's Service Centres (KEP) a circular newsletter that provides guidance on the way in which a range of services to citizens – currently 81 – can be handled entirely electronically through the national portal HERMES.

3 - Description:

More specifically, after technical and institutional amendments, the level of services to citizens has been improved for 81 electronic services such as the issuance of certificates, etc. For these services, the transaction between citizens and public administration can now be processed entirely electronically, without the citizen having to visit the required service in person, neither to apply nor to receive a certificate. The standardised procedures can be found on the homepage of HERMES under the heading Electronic Services.

The only requirement is that citizens are registered as users on the Hermes portal. Then, they need to visit a KEP office to confirm their identity. Carrying their personal identity card, the users need to verify the email account they set up on the Hermes portal. The process of registration and identity verification checks is done only once and the citizen can then perform multiple transactions with the public services from any computer by using their usernames and passwords. The citizen has a mailbox on Hermes, where all requested documents will are placed by the competent services. At this stage, KEP save the documents in the mailbox of the user.

The citizen can further use the electronic documents for any other legal purpose, sending them where necessary via email. According to the current legislation, the application of which was updated with the recent circular newsletter of the Deputy Minister, public services must have email addresses to enable communication with the citizens. These addresses have been posted on Hermes. The subscribers to Hermes can send messages to these addresses with attached electronic documents received in their mailboxes. Electronic documents from the mailbox of the citizen bear an electronic file name ending in .ermis, and are valid certified copies. Public services must accept these electronic documents as valid.

It is noted that this new service is an intermediate stage in the transition to digital government, which will be finalised with the completion of IT projects that have been announced and funded by the Operational Programme National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF) ‘Public Administration Reform’ as well as with the gradual expansion of the use of digital signatures in all public services. Meanwhile, the number of available certified online procedures of KEP will gradually increase, while the environment of the portal will be upgraded technically to make it more manageable. The implementation of this action will be made possible with the assistance of the Central Union of Municipalities and Communities of Greece, municipalities across the country, and the employees of KEP.

Note: Contains public sector information licensed under the Creative Commons Licence v3.0.

Further information:

Official Press Release - Ministry of Administrative Reform and Electronic Governance (in Greek)

4 - Domain:

eGovernment

5 - Topic:

Efficiency & Effectiveness, Benchmarking

Inclusive eGovernment

eIdentity and eSecurity

Services for Citizens

Infrastructure

Policy

User-centric Services

7 - Country:

Greece

9 - Source URL:

http://www.ydmed.gov.gr/?p=4960

12 - Tags:

online procedures

eservices

electronic documents

eGovPoliNet

EU/INT: ENGAGE Platform 2.0 (BETA) released

argyze — Tue, 21 May 2013 15:49:08 +0000

2 - Summary:

After the release of the first version of the ENGAGE platform in 2012, the ENGAGE consortium has recently released ENGAGE v2.0 with new and improved features and architecture.

3 - Description:

A key motivation for those changes and additions were the results and feedback of the project’s extensive user engagement and evaluation efforts.

In an effort to make ENGAGE v2.0 attractive and user-friendly and to maximise the potential of Open Government Data for the target communities, the user interface of the system has been thoroughly reviewed. Moreover, the core of the ENGAGE platform has been strengthened by switching from a flat-metadata schema to a richer, semantically enhanced ENGAGE meta-data model. The aim is for ENGAGE to seamlessly interoperate with a number of PSI repositories through appropriate transformation engines.

Namely, some of the functionalities of ENGAGE v2.0 are:

Single Sign On;
Dataset extension / curation graph;
Elastic and filtered dataset search;
Dataset download/upload and simplified meta-data definition;
Data visualization;
Dataset request from data publishers (e.g. public authorities) and the community;
Display of provenance information.

Moreover, a number of social networking and rating features have been added, such as:

Formation of end user groups/communities;
Comments and discussions on original or derived datasets;
Approval/disapproval and rating of datasets as a quality indicator.

The above features position ENGAGE as a centralised and collaborative PSI eInfrastructure providing the necessary tools for dataset processing and acquisition and differentiate it from a simple repository of open public datasets. It constitutes an intelligent social and collaborative space for researchers, data journalists, citizens and other potential end users, who rely on open public data for professional or personal (re-)use.

The ENGAGE development team continuously enhances the platform so that the upcoming versions will include new features such as: a Point System to reward participation and peer acceptance, ScraperWiki integration, openRefine extension, Interoperability with existing popular repositories (e.g. CKAN-based), an ENGAGE API to search and retrieve meta-data, better visualization features and more.

Meanwhile, the consortium is populating the platform with high-quality datasets and engaging end users to initiate group creations, collaborations and PSI (re-)use.

The ultimate goal of ENGAGE is the development and use of a data infrastructure and collaborative environment, incorporating distributed and diverse public sector information (PSI) resources, capable of supporting scientific collaboration and research, while also empowering the deployment of open governmental data towards citizens.

During the past year ENGAGE created concrete collaborations with other EU-funded projects and initiatives in the e-Infrastructures and Open Data domains such as LOD2, CHAIN-REDS, CLARIN, OpenAIREplus and CITADEL. Currently, five projects have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with ENGAGE, which outlines the nature of collaboration.

In addition, the project maintains an active collaboration with experts of international caliber from commercial and academic institutions, who constitute the ENGAGE Experts Scientific Committee (ESC). The ESC provides strategic advice on the project’s sustainability and competitive advantage, and also provides insight into the new developments of the ENGAGE platform and its services.

In an effort to further strengthen its bonds with current associates and reach out to prospective end user communities, ENGAGE is co-organising the 4th Samos Summit. This event, titled “Samos 2013 Summit on Digital Innovation for Government, Business and Society”, will take place at the Greek island of Samos, on 1 – 5 July 2013. This year, the Samos Summit will also include the 1st International Summer School on Open and Collaborative Governance, which will provide students with the opportunity to be trained in various Gov2.0 issues, including Open Data.

Until the Samos 2013 Summit, ENGAGE is planning to participate in various other events such as:

e-IRG workshop, 22-23 May 2013, Dublin, Ireland;
Conference for e-Democracy and Open Government (CeDEM 2013), 22-25 May 2013, at Danube University Krems, Austria;
IASSIST 2013 Conference, 28-31 May 2013, Cologne, Germany;
13th European Conference on e-Government (ECEG 2013), 13-14 June 2013, Como, Italy;
14th Annual International Conference on Digital Government Research (DG.O 2013) 17-20 June 2013, Quebec City, Canada.

Interested users may become a member of the growing community of ENGAGE and contribute to the creation and proliferation of high-quality Open Data for researchers and citizens by registering at: www.engagedata.eu.

Background Information

ENGAGE is an infrastructure that integrates original PSI datasets and datasets created, derived, curated, maintained and extended by user communities such as: researchers, citizens, developers, journalists, civil servants, businesses and archivists/librarians.

ENGAGE is funded by FP7 Infrastructures programme and supports the objectives of the Capacities programme within the 7th Framework Programme (7FP) for Research and Technological Development (RTD). The project emerges from a policy context of improved access to public sector data, started in June 2011 and will run for three years.

Further Information:

4 - Domain:

eGovernment

5 - Topic:

Services for Businesses

Services for Citizens

Infrastructure

Other

6 - Languages:

English

7 - Country:

Germany

Greece

Netherlands

United Kingdom

EU Institutions

International Organizations

9 - Source URL:

http://www.engage-project.eu/engage/wp/?p=904

12 - Tags:

PSI-reuse

OpenData

einfrastructure

Procurement, IT & Standards (PITS)

HR: Launch of the eCitizens project

eurodyn1 — Fri, 17 May 2013 07:04:00 +0000

2 - Summary:

On 25 April 2013, Milanka Opačić, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Social Policy and Youth along with the Assistant Minister at the Ministry of Public Administration, Darko Parić, presented the eCitizens project.

3 - Description:

In the light of this initiative, Ms Opačić said that this is the first government in 23 years that started to electronically integrate government data from several information systems into a single one. She also emphasised that the Ministry will provide around HRK6 billion (approx. €791 million) out of its budget for the computerisation of certain licenses and specific computer programs.

"Up until a year and a half ago no one in the state had used these data before, because they were not connected to each other. We embarked on data exchange and established a connection with each other," said the Deputy Prime Minister. She added that this project will prove cost-effective as well as beneficial for the citizens, since from next year some data will be available online for citizens to access them from the comfort of their own home.

Ms Opačić stressed that this is a project that must be developed to the point that it will make the state paperless, enabling citizens to avoid long queues, requesting the same document several times, or going from one counter to another. She concluded: "Our wish is to make the state function better but also that citizens ultimately benefit from all we have invested these years in information systems."

Mr Parić added that "the eCitizens project is our idea to replace public tellers with the use of the Internet", emphasising the savings that the state would achieve through the implementation of the project. The state currently spends HRK180 million (approx. €23.7 million) just on postal services, all of which will be processed through eCitizens and so will be delivered by email.

Further information:

Original news article - Ministry of Public Administration (in Croatian)

4 - Domain:

eGovernment

5 - Topic:

Efficiency & Effectiveness, Benchmarking

High Impact Services with Pan-European Scope

Infrastructure

Interoperability

Policy

Regional and Local

7 - Country:

Croatia

9 - Source URL:

http://www.uprava.hr/default.aspx?id=13859

12 - Tags:

ecitizens

public data

cost-efficiency

eGovPoliNet

EU: New application of the EC’s Internal Market Information System (IMI) available to Member States

eurodyn1 — Fri, 03 May 2013 11:58:17 +0000

2 - Summary:

According to an announcement made in late April 2013 on the website of the Interoperability Solutions for European Public Administrations, the latest release of the European Commission’s Internal Market Information System (IMI) has been launched.

3 - Description:

The IMI system, developed by the EC in close cooperation with the Member States, helps national, regional and local authorities to identify and communicate with authorities in other EU Member States. Until now the IMI tool has covered the exchange of information regarding the free movement of citizens and businesses.

The tool is in addition available to public administrations for use by SOLVIT. SOLVIT is an online problem-solving network in which EU Member States work together to solve, without legal proceedings, problems caused by the misapplication of Internal Market law by public authorities. Every Member State has a SOLVIT centre. These centres help to handle complaints from both citizens and businesses. They are part of the national administration and are committed to providing real solutions to problems within 10 weeks. The services provided by SOLVIT are free-of-charge.

The previous software solution used by SOLVIT has now been integrated into the latest release of the IMI system. This way SOLVIT users can benefit from the advantages of IMI, namely its technology (Java EE, ExtJS) and the reusability of a system that is already familiar to them. The move moreover contributes to the IT rationalisation exercise of the EC which is aiming to reduce the number of information systems through re-use of existing systems, thus reducing costs.

The IMI system is popular amongst the Member States administrations. It has some 7 000 registered authorities and more than 14 000 users. The solutions for both SOLVIT and IMI have been developed with the support of the ISA programme and its predecessor programme IDABC.

Further information:

4 - Domain:

eGovernment

5 - Topic:

Efficiency & Effectiveness, Benchmarking

High Impact Services with Pan-European Scope

Infrastructure

Interoperability

Open Source

Policy

Regional and Local

7 - Country:

EU Institutions

9 - Source URL:

http://ec.europa.eu/isa/news/2013/new-application-of-the-internal-market-information-system_en.htm

12 - Tags:

Solvit

public administrations

IMI system

eGovPoliNet

DK: Digital communication with the Danish authorities to be made easier for those living abroad

eurodyn1 — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 13:58:39 +0000

2 - Summary:

The working group of the Steering Committee for eGovernment Strategy has been set up to examine how to make it easier for foreigners who want to move to Denmark as well as for Danes living abroad to communicate with the authorities digitally.

3 - Description:

At the beginning of 2015, most Danes will be able to communicate with the public authorities electronically. For a wide range of self-service solutions, it is already necessary to submit requests and receive notifications digitally and from 1 November 2014 it will also be mandatory to receive emails from the public authorities.

So far it has not been mandatory for citizens with a Danish Personal Identification number (CPR-nummer, in Danish) who live in the country and foreigners who move to Denmark to communicate digitally. However, a significant part of the communication with the public authorities concerns those citizens with a CPR number who live abroad; this is what the Danish Agency for Digitisation aims to do: facilitate the communication by making it digital both for those living abroad and for those moving into the country.

For example, this could be the case for citizens receiving a Danish pension in Spain and who therefore have to receive pension messages, etc. It may also include citizens working fully or partially abroad and who need a communication channel with the Danish tax authority (SKAT). Communication between citizens living abroad and the Danish authorities will be easier and more flexible for the individual, if it is digital.

Similarly, it is expected be easier for foreigners wanting to move to Denmark. There will also be an advantage for the Danish authorities to be able to communicate electronically with foreigners moving to Denmark in order to work or study.

The Steering Committee for eGovernment Strategy has set up a working group to examine how it can be made compulsory to use digital mail, digital self-service solutions and a NemKonto bank account for people living abroad and for foreigners going to Denmark.

In March 2013, the working group submitted a preliminary analysis to the steering committee and it is currently working in a number of sub-analyses that examine how it can be easier for citizens abroad without a Danish passport but with a Danish social security number to communicate with the public authorities via electronic means.

The working group will also examine whether it can be made easier for foreigners moving to Denmark to get a NemID card and thus be able to communicate with the Danish authorities digitally.

The introduction of mandatory use of digital communication for citizens abroad and foreigners in Denmark who have contact with Danish authorities will be based on the principle that they themselves can also communicate digitally, just like citizens living in Denmark. Furthermore, people with special needs that cannot communicate digitally will be supported.

Working studies are expected to be completed in the fall of 2013 and then it will be decided on how and when any requirement will enter into force.

Further information:

Original news article - Danish Agency for Digitisation (in Danish)

4 - Domain:

eGovernment

5 - Topic:

Inclusive eGovernment

Services for Businesses

Services for Citizens

Infrastructure

User-centric Services

7 - Country:

Denmark

9 - Source URL:

http://www.digst.dk/Servicemenu/Nyheder/Nyhedsarkiv/Digitaliseringsstyrelsen/Nemmere-at-kommunikere-digitalt-med-danske-myndigheder-fra-udlandet

12 - Tags:

Digitisation

eServices abroad

digital communication

IT-Governance

AT: The ‘ELAK im Bund’ electronic file system is now available for judicial administration

eurodyn1 — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 13:06:02 +0000

2 - Summary:

On 8 April 2013, the ‘ELAK im Bund’ (electronic file system) was launched for judicial administration, thanks to the successful cooperation between the Constitutional Court of Austria and the Federal Computing Centre (Die Bundesrechenzentrum – BRZ, in German).

3 - Description:

To comply with the statutory provisions, on 8 April 2013 the Constitutional Court changed its internal and external legal proceedings into an electronic format (ELAK).

To make electronic submissions to the Constitutional Court the following options are now available:

the electronic transmission of legal documents;
the electronic delivery services under the provisions of Section 3 of the Delivery Act;
the electronic file (ELAK);
the retrievable electronic forms of the Constitutional Court.

The Federal Computing Centre supported the Constitutional Court in the implementation of electronic files for the judicial area. The aim was to reduce the processing times for applicants, lawyers and authorities. The process has been significantly simplified, from the submission of documents to the carrying out of a transaction and finally to its delivery to the person concerned.

Further information:

4 - Domain:

eGovernment

5 - Topic:

Efficiency & Effectiveness, Benchmarking

Inclusive eGovernment

Infrastructure

Legal Aspects

7 - Country:

Austria

9 - Source URL:

http://www.brz.gv.at/BRZ_News/vfgh_lebt_innovatives_e_government.html

12 - Tags:

ELAK

electronic file system

Constitutional Court

Procurement, IT & Standards (PITS)

RO: Galaţi municipality, the first local authority to join the national Point of Single Contact

eurodyn1 — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 13:35:57 +0000

2 - Summary:

In April 2013, ‘Digital Romania’, the national public centre affiliated to the Ministry of Information Society and the technical operator of the Point of Single Contact, PSC (Punctul de Contact Unic, in Romanian) launched the process of requesting local public administrations to join www.edirect.gov.ro, the central PSC portal.

3 - Description:

Mr Mihai Costache, the spokesman of the municipality announced on 12 April 2013 that Galati is the first local authority to join the PSC. Thus, all procedures and formalities required for registration, licensing and carrying out activities for the provision of services will be available through a central portal. Following the signing of the partnership agreement, citizens and businesses who wish to provide services in Galati can get information and advice via the PSC portal.

The municipality’s contact point provides to those interested the opportunity to electronically apply for permits and licenses. According to a press release of Galaţi municipality, the electronic Point of Single Contact is a platform, whose procedures and formalities required for registration, licensing and carrying out an activity to provide services can be handled online.

By the end of the second quarter of 2013 and after setting up the procedures, citizens and businesses will have access to the following online services:

Online administrative forms for obtaining documents required for town planning;
Online administrative forms for obtaining documents required for road constructions;
Request for approval for public and private urban construction;
Issuing of vehicle safe passage permits for vehicles intended for carrying goods and machinery in the municipality of Galaţi with a maximum laden weight not exceeding 3.5 tons.

The aim of the PSC is to simplify and modernise administrative procedures by reducing the queues, and requiring institutions to simplify administrative procedures and create a single point of contact for those interested to obtain permits/approvals/certifications by electronic means.

The list below presents a number of advantages of using the Point of Single Contact:

Reduces the cost and time needed to handle requests;
Facilitates the rapid dialogue and cooperation among local government institutions;
Reduces bureaucracy;
Provides a notification system for handling requests related to legal issues;
Saves and centralises communication between the institution issuing the permits, approvals, certifications, qualifications and the users, i.e. of the system, citizens or authorities;
Increases transparency and accessibility of public services provided by the municipalities.

Further Information:

4 - Domain:

eGovernment

5 - Topic:

Efficiency & Effectiveness, Benchmarking

Inclusive eGovernment

Services for Citizens

Infrastructure

User-centric Services

7 - Country:

Romania

9 - Source URL:

http://www.cnrd.ro/index.php/massmedia/comunicate/29-12-aprilie-2013-centrul-national-romania-digitala-aflat-in-subordinea-ministerului-pentru-societatea-informationala-operatorul-tehnic-al-punctul-de-contact-unic-pcu-a-demarat-procesul-de-inrolare-a-autor

12 - Tags:

transparency

modernisation

PSC

Balanced Scorecard in EU

EU: Key deliverable of Falsified Medicines Directive achieved

eurodyn5 — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 13:35:40 +0000

2 - Summary:

The European Medicines Agency has recently upgraded its EudraGMP database with information on good distribution practice (GDP) in addition to good manufacturing practice (GMP).

3 - Description:

The new database, now called EudraGMDP, is a key deliverable of the new European Falsified Medicines Directive, which came into force in January 2013. It will make the supervision of manufacturing and distribution of medicines more robust by allowing all the actors in the supply chain to check information available on their suppliers. EudraGMDP will be gradually updated by medicines regulatory authorities in European Union (EU) Member States with distribution-related information and maintained on an ongoing basis.

The additional information will include:

wholesale distribution authorisations;
GDP certificates;
statements of non-compliance with GDP;
registrations of manufacturers, importers (including information on their suppliers) and distributors of active substances.

EudraGMDP is a modification of the EudraGMP database, which was launched in April 2007 to facilitate the exchange of information on compliance and non-compliance with GMP among the regulatory authorities within the European medicines network.

The new system follows the introduction of a new module on planning GMP inspections in countries outside of the EU in December 2012. This module, which is not publicly accessible, was developed in order to make better use of inspection resources by sharing of information among EU regulators and avoiding redundant inspections.

The public has access to most information contained in EudraGMDP, and even more information will be accessible in the coming months, including GMP non-compliance statements. Information of a commercially or personally confidential nature is not released to the public. The decision on which information can be made public is made by the medicines regulatory authority in the Member State that uploads the information to the database.

Further Information:

4 - Domain:

eHealth

5 - Topic:

Continuity of care

ICT for patient safety

Policy

Other

7 - Country:

EU Institutions

9 - Source URL:

http://www.ema.europa.eu/ema/index.jsp?curl=pages/news_and_events/news/2013/04/news_detail_001768.jsp&mid=WC0b01ac058004d5c1

12 - Tags:

database

EudraGMDP

good distribution practice

Procurement, IT & Standards (PITS)

UK: Northern Ireland - Transformational Telemonitoring NI Service celebrated by Health Minister and involved stakeholders

eurodyn5 — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 10:20:11 +0000

2 - Summary:

Experts from across Northern Ireland gathered during the second week of April 2013 to mark the success of the Telemonitoring NI service. The service, which is being provided by a consortium of private telehealthcare solution providers in conjunction with the five health and social care trusts, is designed to transform patient care across Northern Ireland by enabling better control over their health and improving care outcomes.

3 - Description:

Health Minister Edwin Poots said: "Telemonitoring NI continues to grow and expand. To date the service has benefited around 1 500 patients in Northern Ireland, with long-term conditions helping them to better manage their health.

“Chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) affect around three quarters of people over the age of 75. This is the generation for whom transport and mobility pose the biggest problems. The Telemonitoring NI service will allow thousands to monitor their vital signs without having to leave their own homes. It means that patients are able to understand and manage their condition better. Many say it has improved their confidence and given them peace of mind.

“Telemonitoring NI is an excellent example of how the Health Service can innovate using modern technology to deliver a better service for our patients," he adds.

The 'Telemonitoring NI celebratory event' was hosted by the Centre for Connected Health and Social Care (CCHSC), which is part of the Public Health Agency (PHA) and the Department of Health. It was held in order to showcase the Telemonitoring NI service, and recognise Health and Social Care practitioners who are the vanguards of implementing telemonitoring.

Dr Eddie Rooney, Chief Executive of the PHA, said: "Telemonitoring is a leading example of the application of connected health, and means that people who have been diagnosed with conditions such as diabetes, heart failure, COPD, transient ischemic attack or a stroke can have their vital signs monitored from their own home […]”

During the event, Simon Arnold, UK & Ireland Managing Director at the consortium gave a talk on how telemonitoring has enabled Northern Ireland to transform care, putting the individual at the centre of its care model and promoting better outcomes for the user, carer and family.

Simon said: "Telehealth forms part of an important element in the modernisation of the Northern Ireland health and social care delivery system […] We are delivering a clinically-led managed service to support patients from referral to discharge. This represents a long-term commitment and we are investing in the service to keep Northern Ireland at the forefront globally as a technology-enabled connected health eco-system. The Government's 'Transforming Your Care' programme, which includes a strategic assessment of all aspects of health and social care in Northern Ireland, recommended the greater use of telehealth as a key enabler, providing greater support to individuals and health care professionals through telehealth monitoring. We are delighted and proud to see the Telemonitoring NI service being commended for its success so far."

Dr Rooney commented the above by saying: "Not only does Telemonitoring NI help patients manage their condition; it provides healthcare professionals with information to enable them to make appropriate decisions about patient care, meaning there is less need for hospital admission, allowing for better use of resources. Telemonitoring also helps carers by ensuring they are better informed and supported. The event this week brought together delegates to review recent developments within telemonitoring services, showcase the achievements of the service, promote the benefits of remote monitoring and aims to encourage adoption of the telemonitoring service within the wider Heath and Social Care sector" he concluded.

Further Information:

4 - Domain:

eHealth

5 - Topic:

Continuity of care

Health risk management

Homecare & Telecare Services

ICT for disease prevention and health promotion

ICT for patient safety

Personal Health Systems

Policy

Telemedicine services

Wearable/Portable Systems for Health monitoring

7 - Country:

United Kingdom

9 - Source URL:

http://www.ehealthnews.eu/development/3457-transformational-telemonitoring-ni-service-celebrated-by-northern-ireland-health-minister

12 - Tags:

telemonitoring

patient care

chronic health conditions

eGovPoliNet