Year: 2017
Authors: Ana-Maria Stancu, Anders Nordh, Ann Cathrin Riedel, Areti Georgilis, Bernd Schlömer, Bjørn Bedsted, Dalibor Jakus, Dániel Mikecz, Håvard Sandvik, Lars Klüver, Lena Langlet, Milosz Hodun, Monika Rosa, Niklas Wilhelmsson, Rasmus Øjvind Nielsen, Ronald Pohoryles, Rumiana Decheva, Simon Delakorda, Stoil Tzitzelkov and Victor Guzun
As our lives become more digital, we have high expectations of how public services are provided. We want them to be open – yet secure and easy to use. We want them to let us take part more in forming policy and taking decisions that directly affect us. If people can interact more easily with their elected government or with a particular public authority, that is a good thing. It promotes trust; it involves people more in matters that affect them directly. It is democracy in action, even be it a simple administrative operation, like renewing an identity card or registering a change of address. Digital technology can help support and increase public involvement: good for legitimacy, accountability and – ultimately – trust in government. This is not only about value for taxpayers’ money. It is about the government and state properly serving its people. And this is where digital can help. In other words: eDemocracy.