Estonia, EU – Baltic States, Forum, Legislation, Technology
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Friday, 26.04.2024, 00:56
European digital ministers sign Tallinn Declaration on e-government
"For
Estonians, e-government has become quite commonplace and we are used to doing
things online. However, in Europe as a whole, e-governance is not as prevalent
as it is for us. Tallinn Declaration does not translate into innovation for
Estonia as we have already complied with the guidelines, agreed upon today with
the other European countries," Estonian Minister of Entrepreneurship and
Information Technology Urve Palo
said.
"For other European countries, however, Tallinn
Declaration brings about significant changes. We came to a common understanding
that all European countries need to create opportunities for their citizens and
enterprises to use state services digitally and without the need to leave their
homes. The deployment of ID cards across Europe is another aim, in order for
digital signatures to be provided internationally. Me with my Estonian card and
my neighbor with their state document. Think about how much time it would
save," the minister was quoted by spokespeople as saying.
"Tallinn Declaration will also provide guidelines
on how to cooperate more in Europe. First and foremost, we do not want countries
to ask citizens and businesses for the same data many times over. If I have
already registered my car in Estonia, it would be wise if I did not have to
redo it, for example, when moving to Belgium. Governments could exchange this
data automatically. We should always keep in mind though that personal data
belongs exclusively to the citizen and that countries can only share it when
the person in question has expressed it explicitly," Palo added.
"Looking back, the previous e-government
declaration was signed in Malmo in 2009. It is clear that the world has changed
significantly in the meantime. People's security issues are no longer solely a
matter of physical safety as cyber security has become at least as important.
With the Tallinn Declaration, we collectively agreed that the principles of
security and privacy must be in line with the highest standards when developing
state e-services," the minister said.
Tallinn Declaration was signed under the auspices of
the ministerial conference on e-government where European digital ministers,
business people, e-government experts and civil society representatives met to
discuss the future technologies of e-government and share existing user
experience across countries. Among the e-government technologies, the
conference focused on artificial intelligence, virtual reality and solutions
against fake news, already important in the day-to-day work of governments and
even more important in the future, as experts predict, the Ministry of Economic
Affairs and Communications said.
Conference speakers and panelists are to analyze how
future technologies can make the decision-making process of politicians more
data-based. Among the speakers are Marco Pancin, one of Google's top
executives, Dominic Eskofier, head of the European Virtual Reality Association,
former NATO Col. Aivar Jaeski, and Prime Minister Juri Ratas.