Challenge of eCitizen finalized

eGovernment was the focus of the EU Interreg IIIC financed project "Challenge of eCitizen - Promoting eGovernment Actions in European Cities", 2005-2007. In the end of the project, there was time to discuss whether the challenge of eCitizen had been answered. How were eGovernment actions promoted? What were the concrete results of the project? What challenges does the future offer in the field of eGovernment? These questions were discussed in the final seminar of eCitizen in Vaasa, Finland on 21-23 November 2007. Representatives from 10 partner cities from the BSR and beyond took part in the event. For participants outside the project partnership, the seminar with an exhibition offered a chance to familiarize with the results of the eCitizen project in its four thematic areas: eManagement, eServices, eParticipation and awareness raising. Furthermore, it provided an excellent chance to discuss the questions still facing eGovernment development with project partners and other experts. Keynote speakers from the Finnish Ministry of Finance and the Finnish Ministry of the Interior discussed the relation of productivity with eGovernment, and how citizen-centric approach to municipal eServices is supported with national level actions in Finland. The concrete results of eCitizen, its well-established cooperation as well as new challenges in cities' eGovernment development have encouraged the partnership to start planning a new phase in interregional collaboration on eGovernment actions - eCitizen 2.0. The objectives and activities of the follow-up project were discussed in the first preparatory seminar of eCitizen 2.0 in Brussels on 11 December 2007.

Potential financing programmes were introduced, as well as the eParticipation initiative of the EU. The programme also included presentations of the role and activities of the IS Commission, the current trends in eGovernment development in St. Petersburg, and the results of the project.