IES/Citadel Statement Lecture Series: Making Malmo Real: eGovernment in the EU

The Autumn Lecture Series, organised by the Institute for European Studies in coorporation with the Citadel Statement Group, will raise a number of timely and pertinent issues relating to the adoption of eGovernment at the local, European and international levels.

The aim is to develop interest and attention in the European policy debates on eGovernment, to promote, further formalise and develop the Citadel Statement, and to bring together the relevant academic and policy debates in the context of the EU Ministerial Conference on eGovernment, which will take plance in Poznan, Poland in November 2011.

Outline: Making Malmö Real: EGovernment In The EU

The lecture series will raise a number of timely and pertinent issues relating to the adoption of eGovernment at the local, European and international levels. The lectures will address the need to link research and policy, not only in the ‘technological’ sense, but also in terms of getting to grips with the societal context in which public administrations now find themselves. This has been shifting due to a large number of influences, including the growth in NGOs, financial crises, developments in ICT in general, and the impact that all of this has not only on service delivery but also on engagement and policy formulation.

Some of the lectures take the key ‘building-block’ policy areas in the eGovernment Action Plan, and critically examine different aspects of these. Implementation of this at local level is a key input into achieving policy objectives and thus the discussion will revolve around the importance of the local level in implementation. Firstly, a discussion on efficiency and effectiveness will examine the role of post-NPM approaches in understanding and applying public administration reforms in EU states; secondly, a lecture will examine the importance of interoperability, looking specifically at the role of global standards bodies in European, national and sub-national policy for eGovernment. To conclude this short exposé into these cornerstones of eGovernment policy, the role of key enablers will be examined. The question here will be to attempt to understand if key enablers can actually provide the desire and interest in eGovernment uptake, or are other variables of far more importance. This has important consequences in terms of eGovernment provision.

The series will also aim to feed the insights gathered into the Poznan Ministerial Conference. The lectures will directly address transformations in European policy, taking a broad overview from the ‘Bangemann Report’ to the Digital Agenda, with specific attention to the Malmö declaration. Attention will be paid to the state of the art and future challenges for the eGovernment Action Plan, and plans to ‘make Malmö real’.

The lecture series will provide a chance to reflect upon the outcomes from Poznan and the impact on local government and European policy and action. Given the current context of the European eGovernment policy debate, it is envisaged that ‘collaboration’ will provide a topic that will be highly discussed during the Ministerial Conference. Thus, the final two lectures will be focused on this issue. To wrap up the lecture series, a closing keynote speech will be given on the topic of ‘mutual learning’, which should dovetail with some of the experiences of the lecture series itself.

All lectures will be conducted in English. The lecture series is free and open to all, but registration is required for organizational purposes.

Jamal Shahin,
Institute for European Studies (IES)

Sebastian Oberthür,
Institute for European Studies (IES)
 

Programme & Venue

All lectures take place from 6pm until 8pm at the Karel Van Miert Building, Pleinlaan 5, 1050 Brussels. [Map & Directions]


The Autumn Lecture Series is organised within the context of the FP7-funded eGovPoliNet Project and is partially subsidised by the Citadel Statement Group.