Vidović: The government needs to be ready to deal with problems that have not yet emerged

– A successful Smart government assumes openness, e-participation, trust, social mobility, and agility – stated Slavko Vidović, director and founder of InfoDom Group during his brief presentation at the Lider conference ‘Smart Government’.

In this context, Vidović particularly emphasizes agility, šwhich should mean that the government needs to be ready to work with problems that have not yet emerged, thus working with the unknown. He also noted that the concept of Smart Government cannot succeed without cooperation with the environment, adding that the importance of regional development is extremely significant for a small country like šCroatia.

– E-Government has solved problems in the public sector, but problems exist in the economy. Organizational awareness is the key to successful implementation. We need to find a way to transform e-Government into Smart Government as painlessly as possible – concludes Vidović.

The round table discussing where the dimension of ‘Smart Government’ begins, how to increase its efficiency, the government’s preparedness to utilize EU funds, and what the cooperation between the government and the private sector is like in this regard was next on the agenda.

– The implementation of systems in the public sector, where there are countless obstacles and limitations, cannot be compared to that in the private sector. The main problem is not technology but people and their determination to implement changes – believes Hrvoje Somun, CEO of Apis IT.

Davor Huić, president of the Taxpayers Association Lipa, believes that an external shock is the only thing that can accelerate the much-needed processes in the domestic public sector.

– We need to reduce business barriers. The essence of Smart Government is to be small and fast. I do not know if this is clear to the decision-makers. We spend 20 percent of GDP on the public sector and receive poor services – adds Huić.

– The assistant minister for social policy, strategy, and youth, Hrvoje Sadarić, sharply responded that the problem is not with the people who strive and do their jobs well, because if the problem were only with the people, it would have been resolved overnight. Sadarić also announced that by the end of 2017, the social protection system of the Unique Monetary Center (JNC) – One Stop Shop (OSS) should be revived, which should save the state 600 million kuna.

– In the future, we see an integrated public administration that will provide citizens with what they need in the simplest way. Each sector has its own rules of the game, and our task is to be that integral element – said Leda Lepri, the creator of the Law on State Information Infrastructure, optimistically, adding in defense of the current government that it is not easy to clean up the mess that has been left for them.

– Ivan Lupić, director of the ICT Solutions Unit for Industry and Society, Ericsson Nikola Tesla, sees the departure of young people from Croatia as the greatest threat to successful smart solutions, while despite various obstacles, he views cooperation with the public sector as exciting and challenging.

– It is exciting to see how our solutions bring about changes and affect the work of the state. However, the problems we encounter are mostly not in the digital world, but in the analog world – explains Lupić.

Nives Kopajtić from the Association of Cities believes that citizens need to be more in focus, and regarding local authorities, she thinks they are too little involved in the whole story, while Radojka Tomašević, head of the Department for Operational Program Management at the Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds, explained that in the management information system (technical support for operational bodies), it was not about deficiencies, but about technical challenges to integrate all functions into a unified system.

How things work in Denmark, a leading European country when it comes to digitalization, was explained by Per Gade, chief advisor of the Danish Agency for Digitalization.

– The government is key in the whole story. By that, I mean its ability and willingness to adapt, and the knowledge of how to create appropriate value applications for users. The cooperation between the state and the banking sector in Denmark has resulted in an application used today by 4 million people – Gade stated.