Finland Times

File picture of Public Administration and Local government minister Henna Virkkunen. Photo - Lehtikuva

Public Administration and Local government minister Henna Virkkunen on Wednesday emphasised on finding out ways to get more output giving less input in every sector, particular in Information Technology amidst the government policy of expenditure cut.

 

Speaking at a conference of Government CIOs and Key Officials on ‘Leading the Way in E-Government Development’ in Helsinki Finlandia Hall, the minister pointed out that the central government has to cut the IT budget by 10 percent, which is about EU 95 million.

 

Virkkunen suggested for more user-friendly electronic services with latest technology to ease the practical use of IT services in private life.

 

‘At the same time, we need to keep in mind that ICT is not an end itself. It is a hired hand – not the master. We need to find ways to use technology in a way that benefits the government and its customers, citizens and business – and all of this, of course, at a reasonable cost,’ said the minister.

She said that there is also necessity for listening from the citizens and from the businesses as well , which is the key way to gain legitimacy for the reforms.

 

 Pointing out the reason behind Finland’s  joining to the Global Open Government Partnership in April, the minister said that the main theme of the move is citizens’ participation.

 

She said that the action plan consists of four work areas- open procedures, clear language, open knowledge, and government’s capacity- and the action plan was drafted openly with civil society, citizens and civil servants from different government organizations and municipalities.

 

The action plan will be implemented soon, assured the minister in the programme.

 

‘Our next challenge is to make the government documents which contain the decisions of government agencies freely available,’ she said, adding that a significant share of the decisions are published on the internet, but these are often in document format, which means they cannot be automatically exploited in other services.

 

She also urged the official to gather knowledge for deep understanding about using the ICT in the government in the best and most cost-effective way.