e-GOVERNMENT IN FINLAND - ePractice.eu

Figure4.23. Main responsibility for producing e-government plan: lack of inter-agency collaboration
group working across several unit
in the organisation
group working across several
levels of government
group working across several
ministries/central agencies
Source: OECD
unit dealing with IT and
telecommunications
unit dealing with media,
communication, etc.
head of organisation
administration unit
external consultants
financial unit
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%
321. Ministries and agencies that reported providing advanced services stressed that to move ahead
with cross-administration projects, co-ordination and planning to facilitate co-operation are needed within
each administrative field at the central level and across the central government. They also raised the lack of
co-operation with autonomous bodies such as KELA, whose work is closely tied to that of the central
administration, as a barrier to developing joint projects. The Ministry of Labour noted, for example, that
80% of the benefits administered by KELA are paid for by the central administration, which also
determines eligibility.
322. Most shared services seem to be taking place when a local constituency provides a focal point for
service provision. Identifying specific electronic service clusters and projects at a central level could
facilitate co-operation by requiring top management in the organisations concerned to set responsibility
and accountability frameworks. This would provide a clear mandate for lower-level managers to
participate in interagency co-operation, while ensuring that the initiative at the top management level is
consistent with the needs identified within the organisation.
323. The Programme of Action suggests specific measures to strengthen joint service capabilities,
take advantage of base registers and promote data sharing. These measures will be useful enablers of
electronic service clusters and cross-administration e-government projects but may not be sufficient, in
themselves, to initiate the planning of such projects. It would probably be valuable if one of the central
ministries or boards took responsibility for identifying specific areas in which there is a need for planning
service clusters and cross-administration projects in light of organisation-specific strategies and the
existing formal and informal cross-administration networks.
324. The 2001 Programme of Action to Promote Online Government also recommends that a national,
seamless and client-oriented model of online social and health services should be created with the co-
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