Tallinn Welcomes Top Experts and Officials on Open Government and Cybersecurity

On October 4, the ministerial-level e-Partnership conference will take place in Tallinn, gathering together over 150 participants, including civil society and government representatives from the six countries of the EU’s Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries—as well as top experts from EU member states—to discuss how best to use information technology in improving transparency in decision-making process and in guaranteeing the security of cyberspace. The conference will take place as part of the Estonian Presidency of the Council of the European Union and is part of a series of events organised in preparation for the 5th Eastern Partnership Summit, which will be held in Brussels on 24 November.

At the conference—organized by the Estonian Center of Eastern Partnership (ECEAP) and the e-Governance Academy (EGA) in partnership with the European Commission and Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs—attendees will be able to learn more about the activities and accomplishments of the EaP countries the field of e-governance, both those completed to date as well as those planned for the future. Moreover, the event will feature the release of a new study—based on field research performed in all six partner countries—focusing on two areas: the use of ICT in decision-making processes (e-democracy) and cybersecurity. Drawing on the results of the study, participants will discuss examples from each country in order to identify and agree upon best practices. Ultimately, the conference will publish policy recommendations for strengthening cybersecurity and e-democracy in the partner countries.

For years, conference co-organizer EGA has been working to increase the capacity of each of the six partner countries in the field of e-governance. For example, it has implemented six projects in Armenia since 2001, including the creation of new electronic tools for limiting corruption in the management of the population register and of the police. In Azerbaijan, e-governance training programs have been completed. In Belarus training programs have been delivered on the use of ICT and cybersecurity to promote open governance. In Georgia, Estonia’s first twinning project as lead partner was implemented, bringing Georgian e-government legislation into line with that of the EU; moreover, four other projects were conducted, aimed at deepening knowledge and of applying e-government and e-participation solutions. The e-Government Academy helped Moldova to develop its e-state policy and both drafted and texted the state cybersecurity index.  In Ukraine, working with western Ukrainian local governments, EGA developed and deployed ICT tools to improve the provision of public services; currently, it is implementing an inter-agency secure data communications system on the basis of the X-Road system developed in Estonia, together with an information system for service centers aimed at support the delivery of e-services and the completion of administrative reforms.

The e-Partnership conference will take place in the Tallinn Creative Hub (Kultuurikatel) and is by invitation only. For information on how to participate, please contact .

For more information on the conference, please visit  https://www.eu2017.ee/political-meetings/trust-e-governance-eastern-partnership-countries

For more information on the Summit or on other related events, please visit the website of the Council of the European Union: http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/eapsummit/

The e-Governance Academy (eGA) is a non-profit think-tank founded in 2002 to promote information society development and analysis. The academy shares Estonian and international experience in the areas of e-government, e-democracy, and cybersecurity. In its 15 years of existence, eGA has conducted training events for over 3,500 public officials from more than 60 countries and assisted e-governance development in more than 60 countries.

The Estonian Center of Eastern Partnership (ECEAP) is both a research center focusing on themes relevant to the Eastern Partnership as well as a training center aimed at the Eastern Partnership countries. ECEAP’s activities are aimed at strengthening Estonia’s relations with the partner states while supporting the development and implementation of the EU’s Eastern Partnership policy as a whole. As of summer 2017, ECEAP has trained more than 1,200 experts and officials; organized over 150 study visits and training programs; published over 20 research studies; and held four annual conferences on the Eastern Partnership as well as dozens of smaller events both at the ministerial and expert levels.

If you have any questions about the conference, please contact:

Martin Lään, conference director: ,+ 372 528 3070

Emmet Tuohy, ECEAP senior research fellow: , +372 5 552 1587