Open Government

One of the themes at the AGIT 2015 conference will be Open Government and geo-data infrastructures. According to the organisers, the availability of standardised open government services has increased the importance of government geo-data infrastructures, taking the opportunities for using geo-information to a new level. Discussions will focus on questions like what value can be created by building a European 'spatially-enabled society' as part of the European knowledge society, and what are the challenges and prospects with regard to cloud computing.

Open data initiatives should actively create their own successes. Instead of publishing everything they can, Cities should investigate which data can actually be used to solve a problem, Albert Meijer, Professor of Public Innovation at Utrecht University in the Netherlands, said in an interview with the Dutch centre of expertise Open Overheid.

The Private Sector Council on Open Governance is calling for cases of corporate or business-oriented projects to promote better governance in countries and communities around the world. The Council aims to identify and share effective practices.

The Lithuanian government should improve the debate and dialogue with both governmental and non-governmental actors. It should increase citizen engagement in law making, policy making and service delivery. And it should improve its eGovernment strategies and implementations. These are the recommendations from the recently published OECD report 'Lithuania: Fostering Open and Inclusive Policy Making'.