Improving the quality of public digital services (EE0067)

Activity 2.3. Improving the quality of public digital services and developing the GovTech ecosystem

We will create a framework based on the Guide for Choosing Digital Service Owners and Providers that will allow us to make decisions regarding delegating services to the private sector, create the necessary support mechanisms and develop the GovTech ecosystem with innovation-supporting procurements and boosting cooperation with entrepreneurs at an early stage.

Problem definition
Estonia's public digital services system has grown and become fragmented, which is a burden on the state's management capacity and increases costs. The central government provides almost 900 services, in addition to local government and support services, and around 1400 registered datasets are used for their management. Services and their supporting systems are developed by different institutions in parallel, often with little coordination. Although there is cooperation with the private sector, the long-term management and development of the services is usually the responsibility of the public sector, which increases costs and reduces flexibility. Changing needs require a more systematic approach to the delegation of digital services and a strong GovTech ecosystem.

Causes of the problem
The division of management and accountability for services in decentralised, making the system more complex and expensive. The public sector develops a large part of the services itself, including components that could be more effectively developed by the private sector. There is no clear framework for how to select the owner and provider of a service or how to delegate services. There is a lack of procurements supporting market analysis and innovation, and there are not always ready-made solutions on the market. Regulatory and practical support mechanisms (data protection, intellectual property, state assistance, quality requirements) are not consistently implemented. There is no centralised support unit that institutions could turn to with practical delegation issues.

What has been done to solve the problem
In 2021, the public services council approved the base principles of developing digital services: ten principles that are relevant for any service. A toolbox has been created to implement the principles, including suggestions, tools and guidelines to help determine development needs and successfully develop the service. The toolbox also includes a framework for the coordination of the e-state. The Estonian e-charter created by the National Audit Office and the Chancellor of Justice describes the rights of digital service users in the e-state and includes audit questions for service users as well as for the institution developing the service. Find a more detailed overview of our activities on the Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs website¹¹.

In the spring of 2025, the Guide for Choosing Digital Service Owners and Providers¹² was prepared for the Government Office and Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs, which methodically answers the question of whether a public sector digital service should be developed and managed internally or in cooperation with the private sector and to what extent. The guide brings together economic incentive, market potential and risk and sustainability evaluation, gives examples of cooperation between the state and the private sector and gives recommendations for evaluating the total cost of a service, avoiding vendor lock-in and ensuring security in sensitive fields. An Al advisor was also created, to help use the guide more quickly and efficiently and develop initial decision analyses.

Solution
Under the leadership of the Government Office and the Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs, the Guide for Choosing Digital Service Owners and Providers will be implemented to help institutions choose when to delegate services to the private sector. It is important to develop nationwide processes where delegating services is one of the criteria (e.g. preparing the state budget and budget strategy, Development Projects Act). In addition, practical support mechanisms should be developed, including data protection and intellectual property risk reduction, creating a quality framework, market functioning analysis, and cost efficiency evaluation. Developing the GovTech ecosystem includes procurements that support innovation and are problem-based, early involvement of the private sector and widening cooperation networks.

Desired results
- A cost-effective and transparent system where delegating public digital services to the private sector decreases state management costs, ensures service quality and increases understanding of the service cost.
- A strong GovTech ecosystem that increases the capacity of small and medium enterprises to offer public digital services and creates export potential.
- Clear and unified rules for choosing the owners and providers of digital services that increase trust, support innovation and improve the maturity of Estonia's e-state.

How will the commitment promote transparency
The Guide for Choosing Digital Service Owners and Providers and
related support mechanisms will create a unified and transparent
framework that helps to justify why, to whom and on what
conditions public services are delegated, with a focus on the total
cost of the service and the risks. This ensures a transparent and
honest IT service procurement process.

How will the commitment promote accountability
Implementing clear decision-making principles and criteria in the
development of services and its delegation increases the
accountability of public sector institutions for quality,
cost efficiency and the reasoning behind management decisions.

How will the commitment promote citizen participation and co-creation
Developing the GovTech ecosystem supports cooperation-based innovation through early involvement of the private sector in service development and facilitating problem-based procurements that bring the needs of the state to a wider market and create new opportunities for cooperation. When delegating a service to the private sector, the service provider may also be a civil society
organisation.

Milestones | Expected outputs | Expected completion date | Lead | Supporting stakeholders
---|---|---|---|---
Creating a legal framework | The IT Development Projects Act and related legislative changes that obligate us to analyse the extent of the state's role and decrease it | 12.2026 | Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs | Government: Government Office; CSOS: Estonian Association of Information Technology and Telecommunications (ITL), Health Tech Estonia, EdTech Estonia and other representative organs; Others: -
Delegating digital services and developing the GovTech ecosystem in Estonia | Delegating at least 20 services or service components. Implementing new processes and procurement principles in state institutions. | 05.2029 | Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs | Government: Government Office; CSOS: Estonian Association of Information Technology and Telecommunications (ITL), Health Tech Estonia, EdTech Estonia and other representative organs; Others: The service provider will be selected via procurement

¹¹ https://www.justdigi.ee/digi-side-ja-kuber/digiteenused/digiteenuste-arendamine (in Estonian).
¹² https://riigikantselei.ee/avalike-digiteenuste-omaniku-ja-pakkuja-valik-0 (in Estonian).