ESTDEV funds project to improve the provision of public e-services in Ukraine

Ukrainian citizens need to be able to access public services, even during power cuts and Russian airstrikes. Wartime conditions make it extremely difficult for many civilians to visit public authorities in person, which is why there is a critical need for functioning e-services and digitally competent public employees who can operate in virtual environments. 

The eGA project focuses on empowering the employees of Zhytomyr’s regional Administrative Services Centre by providing them with comprehensive digital skills training, including conducting video consultations. This means the service centres will be able to provide public services to the residents of Zhytomyr remotely.

According to Eva-Maria Liimets, ESTDEV's programme manager for Democracy and the Rule of Law, digital development in the Zhytomyr Region is labour-intensive. “The financing of this project is a small but important step in increasing the digital capacity of one region. This project also supports several other projects initiated by ESTDEV to promote the use of e-solutions in the Zhytomyr Region,” said Liimets.

The project will be implemented in four stages:

• The first will assess the digital maturity of public institutions in the Zhytomyr Region, map their exact needs, and develop a digital strategy.
• In the second stage, public service employees from the Zhytomyr Region undertake a study trip to Estonia. 
• During the third stage, a video consultation pilot project will be launched in select public service centres. 
• The fourth and final stage of the project will include organising a closing event that summarises the new skills learned by the project participants.

Although this project focuses on the Zhytomyr Region’s city and municipal governments, its activities are scalable to other regions throughout Ukraine, which would strengthen the country’s capacity to provide public digital services now and in the future.