May 29, 2018 - In June 2014, the European Commission adopted a proposal for a new programme to support interoperable solutions for public administrations, businesses and citizens of the EU – ISA2 programme. The overall goal of this project is to achieve full interoperability between different IT system that provides electronic public services, both between member states and on the intercontinental level. Interoperability, electronic governance, and open data represent the basis for further modernization of public administration and increasing the efficiency and quality of public services. Most importantly, they receive cross-border electronic public services, which include, among other things, services of the internal market, environment, internal affairs, customs and taxes, health, electronic identity and public procurement.
Regarding this topic, the Minister of Public Administration in Montenegro, Suzana Pribilovic, and European Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society, Mariya Gabriel, signed a Memorandum of Understanding between the European Union and Montenegro, which makes Montenegro the first country in the Western Balkans to join this programme, aiming to make better digital public services and cross-border interoperability. This type of document features the participation of Montenegro in the plan for interoperability solutions as well as a common framework for European public administration, economy, and citizens. This is what the ISA2 programme is all about.
“In Montenegro, where the availability of cross-border services continues to be an obstacle to the development of the e-government, there is already a justified need to participate in the ISA² programme. This is also a step further in the preparation of public administration in part of the ICT, especially in the area of interoperability and interconnectivity of Montenegrin administration information systems and the use of existing ISA² solutions, as well as planning future activities within the Programme,” Minister Pribilović said.
Through membership in the ISA2 programme, Pribilovic noted that the Ministry of Interior would be available to use a costly European sTESTA platform, which serves to transfer confidential information and highly secure transmission of unprotected data. By the same occasion, Montenegro has, at its disposal, standardized semantic resources for a higher level of interoperability of the IT system. Also, concrete software solutions and opportunities for Montenegrin IT companies to participate in tenders are available, which are implemented within the ISA2 programme, as well as the free technical support, noted Pribilovic.
