In addition, the Nordic Council of Ministers has established an ad hoc Council of Ministers for Digitalisation.
In light of this, NordForsk will launch a new research initiative, “Digitalisation of the Public Sector” in 2019 to generate new knowledge useful to practitioners as well as policy-makers.
Changes in the demographic composition in all of Europe have created new demands for services. This has given rise to questions about the capacity of the public sector as the main provider of these services. Governments are facing increasing expectations from users to deliver more innovative and responsive services in both real- and near-time. There is an urgent need for a strategic, systematic, and consistent approach to achieve more user-driven public services and sustained improvements in public sector productivity.
Furthermore, there is a strong political desire to further improve the efficiency, effectiveness and governance of public services design, public infrastructure and delivery through digitalisation in the Nordic countries.
Against this backdrop, NordForsk will be launching a new research initiative on digitisation of the public sector in collaboration with funding partners during 2019.
The Nordic countries already rank high in a European and global perspective in terms of their level of digitalisation, and NordForsk’s new research initiative will help to further expand Nordic competence and innovation skills in the field. This will in turn give the Nordic region a global advantage in the ongoing digital transformation process.
Further information about thematic priority areas, calls and other practical issues will be made available as soon as possible.
