The Tallinn Declaration on eGovernment was adopted in October 2017 during the Estonian Presidency of the Council of the EU. It sets out a vision for citizen-centric digital government across Europe, with a focus on key principles that member states should commit to in developing digital public services. In the Tallinn Declaration User-Centricity Principles, One of the key aspects highlighted in the declaration is the importance of user-centricity, thinkking.vn.
Among the principles that member states agreed to adopt as part of a user-centric approach were:
- Digital by default services
- Inclusion and accessibility
- Openness and transparency
- Trustworthiness and security
- Cross-border access
However, there was one notable principle from earlier EU policies on user-centricity that was missing from the list adopted under the Tallinn Declaration: multilingualism.
Which of the Following Was Not One of the Principles That Member States Should Commit to Adopting?
As outlined above, the Tallinn Declaration defined several important user-centricity principles that governments across the EU pledged to integrate into their digital strategies. However, multilingualism was conspicuously absent from the adopted list.
Earlier EU-level policy such as the Digital Agenda for Europe had included multilingualism as a key user-centric principle for digital public services. The aim was to ensure that all citizens could access services and information in their own language.
But in the Tallinn Declaration, language accessibility was not emphasized in the same way. The agreed user-centric principles focused more on areas like security, transparency, inclusion and cross-border access.
So the principle that was missing from the Tallinn Declaration’s adopted list of user-centric priorities was multilingualism. This represented a move away from earlier commitments to multi-language accessibility in digital government.
In the Tallinn Declaration User-Centricity Principles Which of The Following Was Not One of The Principles That Member States Should Commit to Adopting?
To recap, the key user-centric principles outlined in the 2017 Tallinn Declaration that member states agreed to implement were:
- Digital by default services
- Inclusion and accessibility
- Openness and transparency
- Trustworthiness and security
- Cross-border access
The one major user-centric principle that was not included in this list was:
- Multilingualism
Earlier digital government policies at the EU-level had strongly emphasized the need to provide multilingual digital public services. But multilingualism was omitted from the user-centric priorities adopted under the Tallinn Declaration.
So while principles like security, transparency and inclusion were agreed, language accessibility did not make it into the final list of user-centric commitments in the declaration. This marked a shift away from the stress on multilingualism in previous EU digital public service policies.
The Tallinn Declaration – Shaping Europe’s Digital Future
The Tallinn Declaration on eGovernment was adopted in October 2017 during the Estonian Presidency of the Council of the European Union. It represented a milestone in establishing a strategic vision and priorities for user-focused digital public services across Europe.
Some key facts about the Tallinn Declaration:
- It was signed by all EU member states as well as EFTA countries at the 2017 Tallinn Digital Summit
- The aim was to provide political guidance on the further digital transformation of government and public services
- It sets out a roadmap for citizen-centric and user-driven eGovernment up to the year 2022
The declaration highlights principles that governments should follow to ensure digital public services are designed around user needs. This includes a commitment to:
- Digital by default government services
- Inclusion, accessibility and literacy
- Openness, transparency and trustworthiness
- Cross-border mobility and interoperability
Implementing these principles should make it easier for citizens to interact digitally with governments. The Tallinn Declaration vision is for user-centric digital government to become “the new normal” across Europe.
The declaration also emphasizes key enablers like eIdentification, cybersecurity and data exchange frameworks. Overall, it provides an important reference for steering EU and national policies on citizen-focused eGovernment.
Tallinn Declaration on eGovernment – Die Europäische Kommission
The Tallinn Declaration on eGovernment was adopted during the Estonian Presidency of the Council of the EU in October 2017. It sets out a series of principles and objectives to guide the digital transformation of public administration across Europe.
Some key facts about the declaration:
- It was signed by all EU member states as well as EFTA countries
- The aim is to accelerate the modernization of public services through digital technologies
- It establishes political priorities for eGovernment development up to 2022
- The declaration promotes user-centric, inclusive and seamless eGovernment
The Tallinn Declaration focuses on principles such as:
- Digital by default public services
- Transparency and engagement
- Interoperability and cross-border services
- Cybersecurity and data protection
By implementing these principles, governments should deliver public services that are easy-to-use, efficient and accessible to all citizens and businesses.
The declaration also highlights the importance of key enablers for user-centric eGovernment, like electronic identification (eID) and digital infrastructure. Overall, it provides a shared vision and commitments from European countries for shaping citizen-focused digital public services.
D1.3 GAP ANALYSIS – UserCentriCities
The EU-funded UserCentriCities project aims to support cities and regions in implementing the user-centricity principles from the Tallinn Declaration on eGovernment at the local level.
As part of this, the project partners conducted a gap analysis looking at:
- Where there were needs to develop new user-centric measures
- Where existing initiatives needed adjustment
- How to integrate different user-centric approaches
Some findings from the UserCentriCities gap analysis:
- Many local governments lacked concrete indicators to benchmark user-centricity
- There were gaps in feedback mechanisms and co-creation with citizens
- Multichannel service delivery was limited in some areas
- More interdepartmental collaboration was needed
- Knowledge exchange on user-centric methods was limited
The gap analysis helped identify priorities for improving local eGovernment services in line with Tallinn Declaration principles. It also informed the development of a user-centricity measurement framework tailored to cities and regions.
Overall, the analysis provided insights on leveraging the Tallinn Declaration to enhance user-focus locally and highlighted areas needing attention to achieve more citizen-centric public services.
D1.2 ADAPTED USER-CENTRICITY PRINCIPLES
The UserCentriCities project conducted an exercise to adapt the user-centricity principles from the Tallinn Declaration for application at the city and region level.
This involved re-interpreting the EU-level principles to reflect local contexts and needs. Through a co-creation process, partners formulated adapted user-centricity principles including:
- Citizen empowerment: enabling participation, engagement and co-creation in service design
- Inclusion: ensuring accessibility and support for vulnerable groups
- Multichannel delivery: providing integrated and omnichannel digital services
- Proximity: delivering localized services tailored to community needs
- Open data: enabling transparency, accountability and value creation
- Co-creation: institutionalizing participatory methods for service improvement
The adapted principles provide a strategic framework for assessing and enhancing the user-focus of local public services based on the Tallinn Declaration goals. But the localization exercise led to some adjustments to emphasize priorities like multichannel services, open data and citizen participation which are central at the city level.
The UserCentriCities project demonstrates that while high-level declarations provide an overarching vision, adaptation is needed to turn principles into practice at the local government level.
About Tallinn Ministerial Declaration | Joinup
The Tallinn Declaration on eGovernment was adopted in October 2017 during the Estonian Presidency of the Council of the EU. It sets out a vision and principles to guide the digital transformation of public services from the perspective of user needs.
Some key facts about the Tallinn Declaration:
- Signed by all EU member states and EFTA countries
- Provides political guidance on eGovernment until 2022
- Calls for more citizen-centric, seamless and transparent eGovernment
- Focuses on principles like digital by default, inclusion, openness and cross-border mobility
The aim is to shape user-friendly digital services and enable mobile, interactive and personalized public sector interactions across Europe.
The declaration also emphasizes key enablers like electronic ID, cybersecurity and interoperability frameworks. And it highlights the importance of monitoring progress regularly.
Overall, the Tallinn Declaration signifies a commitment from European countries to collaborate on shaping digital-first, proactive and user-driven public services. Implementing its principles will be key to mainstreaming citizen-centric eGovernment.
Localising the User-Centricity Principles
The EU-wide Tallinn Declaration provides high-level guidance on user-focused eGovernment. But translating its principles to the local context is key.
The UserCentriCities project undertook an exercise to “localize” the Tallinn Declaration by:
- Adapting the principles for cities and regions
- Gathering input from local stakeholders
- Drafting a version tailored to local needs
Some ways the localized principles differed:
- More emphasis on citizen participation and open data
- Inclusion of multichannel delivery
- Focus on proximity and localization
Local governments also stressed new principles like:
- Co-creation in service design
- Interdepartmental collaboration
- Measuring user-centricity
The localized principles provide municipalities with a strategic framework to apply the Tallinn Declaration based on local user needs and public service contexts.
This shows that while high-level declarations set useful EU-wide goals, local translation of the principles is key to driving change on the ground. Participatory processes allow cities and regions to adapt goals to their realities.
Conclusion
The Tallinn Declaration established a set of user-centric principles that European member states committed to implementing in their digital government strategies. While it outlined priorities like inclusion, transparency and cross-border access, multilingualism was one notable principle missing from the adopted list compared to previous policies. Adapting high-level declarations through local co-creation processes can help translate ambitious EU-wide visions into realities for user-centric public services on the ground in cities and regions.
