WIRTSCHAFT.NRW
INDUSTRIE.KLIMASCHUTZ.ENERGIE

Public services to go digital

By setting up the Department for Digitalization, by launching the eGovernment Strategy and the Digital Strategy and by overhauling the eGovernment Act, the Government of North Rhine-Westphalia has given the digital transformation a defining shape: Government agencies are service providers to the community, so their transition to digital helps make North Rhine-Westphalia a good place to live and do business. Ultimately, this contributes to economic success, jobs and prosperity, for the benefit of the people and the private sector.

It must be possible for businesses and individuals to complete administrative procedures – like obtaining a passport or getting planning permission – online, just as efficiently as making bank transactions, booking trips or buying things.  Digital transformation paves the way for a fundamentally new relationship between public service and the people: information is better updated and provided in a transparent form, better prepared and easier to access.

The state government has set itself the goal of putting the digital transformation of public services on a digital footing.  Achieving this warrants a standardised and integrated approach rather than the mere digitalization of individual administrative processes. New technologies and innovative cooperation techniques must be taken into consideration early on, and it is crucial to create modern jobs. Unnecessary red tape must be reviewed and reduced. All this serves the objective of making everything better, simpler and more efficient, for the benefit of business, workers and the wider community.