Management Ministry presents digital government initiatives to representatives from 15 countries

Representatives from 15 countries participate in the 58th Annual Conference of the International Council for Information Technology in Government Administration (ICA), in Gaborone, Botswana, until Thursday, August 29. On the morning of Wednesday (27), Deputy Secretary of Digital Government, Luanna Roncaratti, remotely represented Brazil’s Ministry of Management and Innovation in Public Services (Ministério da Gestão e da Inovação nos Serviços Públicos/MGI) at the event. She shared the Brazilian experiences with GOV.BR, the National Strategy for Digital Government and the GOV.BR Counter.

During her panel presentation “Digital and Green by Default: Digital Government and Inclusivity”, Roncaratti detailed the contributions of Brazil’s G20 presidency within the Digital Economy Working Group (DEWG), as the country has made digital government one of its top priorities. “Our goal is to understand how digital policies and governmental services can enhance the relationship between governments and citizens, provide high-quality public services and take advantage of opportunities in the digital economy,” she explained.

According to the deputy secretary, Brazil advocates for the potential of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPIs), focusing on solutions for digital identity and data sharing as powerful tools to make public services more inclusive and user-centered. A DPI consists of a set of shared digital systems that must be secure and interoperable. These systems can be constructed from open specifications and standards to provide equitable access to public and private services at a societal scale.

“In Brazil, a fundamental DPI is the GOV.BR platform, which allows more than 160 million citizens to access over 4.300 digital services in a secure and integrated manner,” said Roncaratti. “GOV.BR provides not only digital authentication, but also proof of life for individuals who receive pensions and other social benefits,” she added.

The National Digital Government Strategy was another inclusion promotion topic presented by the deputy secretary. It aims to articulate and direct digital government initiatives across all levels of government to enhance and simplify citizens’ access to public services. “We have dedicated ourselves to improving inclusion and are committed to not leaving anyone behind. For this reason, we have developed this strategy to help states and municipalities evolve their digital maturity,” she added .

Lastly, Roncaratti highlighted the GOV.BR Counter (Balcão GOV.BR). “This solution facilitates access to digital public services. It serves as a bridge between the government and society to address issues such as lack of digital skills, connectivity problems and others. Its key goals are reducing the digital divide and helping citizens use digital public services,” said the deputy secretary. In-person services provided by GOV.BR  Counter support the implementation of the Digital Strategy across Brazil.

ICA

The ICA is an international non-profit association that aims to facilitate and promote knowledge and experience exchange about management, organizational impact and the use of information technologies in central public administration at the global level. The ICA currently gathers 15 countries from five continents: Azerbaijan, Belgium, Botswana, Canada, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, The Netherlands, Israel, Japan, Portugal, Romania, Singapore, Switzerland and Taiwan. These are members associated with the OECD, the World Bank and the European Commissions.