Digitalisation ministers and other politicians from Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, Greenland, Åland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania agreed in the declaration about the need to strengthen the digitalisation capacities across the Nordic-Baltic governments and societies, particularly as regards joint cross-border electronic services. The meeting also highlighted the increasing competitive edge of the Nordic-Baltic region through digital tools and a more efficient single digital market.
“This accord will contribute to the facilitation of cross-border services, including the use of electronic signatures across the region. Businesses will have an opportunity to develop and test high value-added IT solutions, which can then be taken beyond the region. Besides, this cooperation will benefit the economic competitiveness itself, increase government transparency and enable a more efficient governance”, said Chancellor Milda Dargužaitė.
It was unanimously agreed that the digitalization processes must be coordinated between the national central authorities to achieve a digitalisation breakthrough, noting that the success is due to a large extent to qualified professionals in the public sector. For the moment, it lacks technical knowledge and especially – leadership skills.
This declaration is expected to strengthen the competitiveness of the Nordic-Baltic region and to have a significant impact on the single digital European Union (EU) market.
