b-solutions II Call for Proposals: border obstacles under the "eGovernment" and "Multi-lingualism" thematic areas

In the „eGovernment“ Action Plan 2016-2020 – COM(2016)-179, the European Commission set out a long-term programme for fostering an open, efficient and inclusive public administration through the promotion of e-solutions and end-to-end services.

However, border stakeholders and public authorities concerned with cross-border administrative procedures and data exchanges, keep facing some challenges due to different national transpositions of the EU legislation. 

In order to give visibility to the legal and administrative obstacles faced by CB structures, the initiative b-solutions dedicated one of the 8 thematic areas to the “eGovernment”, following the indications contained in the COM(2017)-307 “Boosting growth and cohesion in EU border regions” of the European Commission.

Upon assessment of the applications received - made by the EU Commission’s DG REGIO and the Association of the European Border Regions (AEBR) – one case was selected under the “eGovernment” thematic area.

Take a look at the description and discover if you face similar obstacles in your area:

Cross-border e-procurement - EGTC GO (IT-SI)

Different transpositions of the Directive 2014/24/EU at a national level in Italy and Slovenia have obliged the EGTC GO to publish its own procedures or in the Italian or in the Slovenian e-procurement platforms, providing access only to the economic operators of one or the other side of the border. This is hindering a fair competition among the economic actors and service providers within the implementation of the two ITI projects whose the EGTC is beneficiary and whose actions impact both sides of the border.

The COM(2017) – 307 “Boosting growth and cohesion in EU border regions” clearly indicates that multi-lingualism is a European integration goal. The European Union has 24 different official languages which make it a unique example of cultural diversity that must be preserved.

Promoting multi-lingualism, especially in border-regions, though, may lead to an increase of meaningful exchanges between public administrations and individuals, forstering the everyday-life cooperation across the borders.

Therefore, with the aim of exploring the existence of possible legal obstacles in this matter, one of the 8 thematic areas of the initiative b-solutions was dedicated to “Multi-lingualism”.

Within the 2nd Call for proposals, the EU Commission’s DG REGIO and the Association of the European Border Regions (AEBR), selected the following case:

Stop geo-blocking! Overcoming discrimination and developing intercultural competences by providing access to online content across borders

EGTC Euregio Meuse-Rhine (NL-BE-DE)

The practice of geo-blocking sets up new borders to citizens and professionals to get access to audio-visual content in an increasing digital market due to their geographical location. The issue becomes crucial for citizens and professionals in the Euregio Meuse-Rhine not only to develop a common understanding and acquire important cultural and linguistic skills but also to access and consult these services in their native language as they might live or work on the other side of the border.

Tagy
eGovernment bsolutions cooperation crossbordercooperation Multilingualism Pilot projects