Egovernment: Transforming Government Engagement in the European Union

Abstract

eGovernment is not just a government service on the Internet. The strategic nature of the service relies on the objective of simplifying communication between all parties of the society: government, citizens and business. The use of ICTs can help to connect all three parties and facilitate processes and activities that support their connectivity. Therefore, eGovernment encourages good governance. However, with the nature of ICTs constantly changing, the subsequent economic and societal impact in Europe is diversified. Continued technological progress has led to a societal acceptance of the new technologies, amount to a step-change in what ICT can achieve. Rapid technological developments have altered the level of government engagement within the society. Our point of interest, European societies, has demonstrated diversified levels of government and citizen engagement. For some EU countries’ citizens, interaction with the government through online facilities is not a novelty. However, to achieve the same level of efficiency and flexibility for all the EU member-countries is going to be challenging. The experience from the eGovernment services in the European Union shows that the willingness to decentralize procedures and mainly responsibility, and upgrade the role of electronic means, can strengthen governance. Our case study from Europe 2020 will showcase the dynamic shift of political direction towards flexible public services. The diversity of eGovernment implications in the European Union remains exceptionally interesting. This article is going to examine the political issues related to governance in the European Union, from the perspective of democratic governance. Additionally, it will observe how far the European countries have been successful in implementing the EU’s action plan. The article tries to identify the current status and the progression achieved so far in EU, with regards to the eGovernment area. Specific reference is being made to the open government approach, attempting to identify the level of political creativity originated in the Europe 2020 Initiative. The article argues that there are diverse speeds and levels of policy adaptation within the EU.

DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n2s2p173