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Austria's pioneering role in eGovernment: Innovative solutions and digital transformation
Austria is on course for digitalisation - even in the smaller towns in the mountains. Photo: Unsplash
Austria impresses not only with its innovative approaches to e-government, but also with its strongly federalist approach. The eGovernment Benchmark 2023 particularly highlights the eID card app, the digital driving licence, Zoll4D and Grant4Companies as pioneering international best practices.
The eAusweis app makes it easy to store digital IDs and proof of identity, such as the digital driving licence, on a smartphone and share them contactlessly using a QR code. Identification takes place via the electronic ID Austria, which offers two-factor authentication via the "Digitales Amt" app.
Support for customs and companies
The Zoll4D app supports customs employees by identifying frequently used hiding places during vehicle inspections. Grant4Companies searches for individual grants for companies. These apps show the change from e-government to m-government, which is centred on mobile devices. The oesterreich.gv.at platform, which offers digital government services, can be downloaded as the "Digitales Amt" app. With a usage rate of 70 per cent of internet users, Austria is well above the EU average of 55 per cent.
Partner country of the Smart Country Convention 2022
As a pioneer in e-government and smart cities, Austria was the partner country of the Smart Country Convention 2022. With the Federal Ministry of Finance's Digital Action Plan Austria, Austria is pursuing a strategic transformation that is accompanied by a broad expert and stakeholder process. So that Austria can make more out of its own data, be crisis-proof and grow sustainably. Digitalisation without losers is important.
Florian Tursky, State Secretary for Digitalisation and Telecommunications, represented Austria personally at SCCON: "My principle is to simplify administration through digitalisation and to take people with me," emphasised Tursky.
A central element is the ID Austria, which enables digital ID cards such as the digital driving licence.
Success factor: digital transformation
The E-ID plays a central role in Austrian e-government. With projects such as the citizen card, which serves as an electronic identity card, online procedures can be handled securely and efficiently. For companies, the company service portal USP is the central platform for completing formalities online. With FinanzOnline, the tax authorities offer an e-government portal for tax returns and other applications that is available around the clock.
Austria shows how strategic, sustainable digitalisation can be successfully implemented.
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