High-Level Policy Dialogue on e-Governance for EU-LAC Alliance
The 2nd edition of the EU-LAC Digital Alliance High-Level Policy Dialogue on eGovernance in Tallinn gathered 70 participants from 27 countries. The event on 27-28 May brought together representatives from 20 governments across Latin America and the Caribbean, five regional organizations, sovereign delegations, and representatives from the European Commission.
The high-level political dialogues are a key pillar of the EU-LAC Digital Alliance, aiming to unite various stakeholders from Latin America, the Caribbean, the European Union, and its Member States to build consensus and collaborate on a range of digital issues.
Foreign minister of Estonia Margus Tsahkna expressed in his opening statement that collaboration and best practice exchange between the European Union and Latin America and the Caribbean region is key. “It´s our collective duty to ensure all nations can access secure and inclusive e-government solutions,” Tsahkna said.
eGa was the co-host of the event, as the co-implementer of the Team Europe EU-LAC Digital Alliance initiative. The event ran back-to-back with the annual e-Governance Conference.
“One of the lessons the European Union can share with the world is that even small countries like Estonia can have an impact on their neighbours. Estonia is the third smallest country in the Union, but is leading digital transformation for the entire continent,” Hannes Astok, Executive Director of eGA said in his statement.
The main goal of the 2nd High-Level Policy Dialogue on e-Governance was to strengthen bi-regional relationships on digital issues and promote activities in two key areas: 1) cross-border data interoperability and 2) digital identification and e-signatures.
A review of the operational conclusions from the 1st High-Level Political Dialogue on e-Governance, held in San José, Costa Rica, was conducted, considering new realities, needs, advancements, and actions necessary for the future. These updated operational conclusions help identify new challenges and commitments aimed at enhancing the experiences related to interoperability, electronic signatures, and digital identification, particularly highlighting the role of regional organizations in promoting the principles of e-Governance for the benefit of the region.
“As co-chairs of this dialogue, we are very happy to meet again for the second dialogue on e-governance and to follow up on our commitments from last year, as well as the search for new opportunities and agreements that can materialise in benefits for our region,” said Diego Leiva, Director of e-Government, MICITT, Costa Rica
The event created a valuable space to examine the role of regional organizations and their potential as catalysts for the regional digital transition. The discussions in Tallinn were set on the existing roadmap for bi-regional cooperation on eGovernance and envisioned concrete steps for a joint regional agenda ahead of the 2025 EU-CELAC Summit.
“Cooperation with other countries to share our knowledge and work together is part of our political tradition in Central America,” said David Osorio, Director of e-Government, Presidential Commission for Open and Electronic Government (GAE), Guatemala
