“Reaping the Benefits of EGovernment”

To mark the Portuguese Presidency of the European Union, the European Commission and the Government of Portugal jointly organised the fourth Ministerial eGovernment Conference on “Reaping the Benefits of eGovernment”.

The conference, held on 20-21 September, focused on four main ICT and Public Services related areas, namely:

î Better public services for growth and jobs

î Participation and transparency

î Social impact and cohesion

î Effective and efficient administration, with special emphasis on the local and regional levels

Against this backdrop, the Conference focused on highlighting the direct impact of eGovernment on economies and citizens as well as its added-value in terms of achieving the initial goals of the Lisbon Strategy. The agenda also included an analysis of the progress made since the 2005 Manchester Ministerial Declaration and the i2010 eGovernment Action Plan.

More than 1,000 participants, including top-level representatives of public authorities (from the regional and local levels and the European Commission) as well as delegations from third countries, EU candidates and EFTA countries as well as high level business executives attended the event. Together with the EU Member States’ Ministers, they created a platform for debate and exchange of ideas around the main four themes mentioned above.

The Conference also presented finalists of the European eGovernment Awards 2007, namely Norway, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy and France, selected from 53 cases. Based on a public vote, the prize for the “Most Inspiring Good Practices” was awarded to the State Police of Italy. (CC)

For further information, please visit: http://www.megovconf-lisbon.gov.pt