United Nations Public Service Awards Case Studies

FORMEZ proposes Partecipa.net for section 3 “Fostering participation in policy-making decisions through innovative mechanisms”.
The e-democracy project of Emilia-Romagna is one example of institutional collaboration to promote participation through new mechanisms and new information system.
Through a significant and permanent connections system with the citizenship, the project aims to test on field telematic participation methodologies to regional politics definition and to services management for all the institutional levels.

According to Partecipa.net definitions e-democracy allow the local government to reach the following objectives:
• a wider administrative transparency, to improve institutions and citizens’ attitudes towards self responsibility, collective learning through the spreading and sharing of information too often not well- understood by people.
• to increase the effectiveness of the administrative action, supporting the political institution to define problems in a proper way through an appropriate analysis and to choose suitable solutions.
• to increase the efficiency of the administrative action, broadening the approval area to the choices of the administration. The involvement of the citizens interested in the decision-making phase will avoid such choices being reconsidered later.

The first project output is an e-democracy kit, a complete tool, as far as technological and methodological are concerned, to activate participation processes, adaptable to all administrations and policies ( the tools are neutral with respect to policies, so the kit is extremely re-usable).
Through the kit citizens can express their needs, influence policy-making; comment on policy implementation; provide feedback on government services (on and off-line services); and file complaints.
From the governmental point of view, the policy makers can interact better with the public, in particular individual citizens, and allow citizens, implement new processes and institutional mechanisms to consider the questions posed and citizens points of view.
The project will demonstrate openness through consultative mechanisms with the public as the best way to realize effective policies.
Transparency is given by the entire publication of the project’s results at www.partecipa.net.
The project concern the following innovative areas:
• Digital citizenship development
• Information society actions and projects
• Cooperation between different administrations
• Networks and technologies

What is the initiative about? (the solution)
Nowadays democratic participation combined with new information and communication technologies establishes several challenges at different levels of European governance in terms of technical, political and constitutional implications, particularly in the area of legislative processes implemented at regional level. A significant number of regional authorities in different Member States have undertaken actions in developing e–participation. It is generally known that the relationship with citizens, in fact, becomes more relevant at local level. The Municipalities represent the government level where it is easier to start successful participation processes. In this context the regional council of Regione Emilia Romagna (Italy) has control over contents and processes, while the local administration can help enhance the participation process providing close contact with citizens, via the e-democracy kit. Since 2004 the Emilia Romagna Regional council has been engaged in an e-participation project named "Partecipa.net", which has been awarded a co-financing from the Italian national government. The most important component introduced was the e-democracy kit. This kit is an integrated ensemble of technological open source tools, methodologies and procedures that favour citizens active involvement for the on line debates moderation, acquisition and publication of the results of the participated decision-making processes. This project involves using the “e-democracy” kit, at local level, to involve citizens in the effects of a particular regional policy. The kit, developed through this project, consists of: software applications: (Registration form, Authentication form, Forum form, Pool form and Faq form); technical documentation for support, participation methodologies and procedures. One of its key advantages is the possibility to replicate the kit in other administrations. The kit is flexible, easy to use, and readily adaptable to different levels of government. The project has been developed and tested by all partners: Regione Emilia Romagna, Regione Emilia Romagna's Legislative Assembly; Municipality of Bologna, Ferrara, and Modena, Province of Ferrara and Piacenza, Association of Municipalities ( Argenta, Portomaggiore, Ostellato e Voghiera) all of whom testify the easy replication and institutional flexibility provided : in fact they represent different governmental layers of the regional territory. All partners participated in the testing phase of the prototype, the accessibility of the tool was also tested by an association of disabled people. The regional law 20/2000 provides the legal frame for this plan, foreseeing the performance of the subsidiary principles and cooperation in matters of territorial and urban planning. Since its implementation in May 2004 and up to November 2006, the project has been referred to in 47 newspaper articles and e-magazines. The launch of the website “Partecipa.net" in July 2006 is the newest innovation in the plan .This site is connected to the administrations partner's web site. On this Site, information regarding the whole project can be found. The project “Partecipa.net” is associate to DEMO-net, which is a European network for e-participation.

Who proposed the solution, who implemented it and who were the stakeholders?
Important events to date (from the project): • April 2005, the project was awarded a co-financement by Cnipa, which is the National Center for innovation in Public Administrations. • May 2005: presented to the conference “E-dèmocratie, e-partecipation citoyenne: quel role pour les Regions?” at Committee of Regions Brussels. • July 2005 an agreement was signed by 21 administrations for the governance of the Project. 21 local administrations adhered to partecipa.net and started cooperating. • November 2005, presented to the international workshop on eGovernment of the BRISE project in the section “Open Source for Pas and civic telematic”. BRISE was an Interreg IIIc project founded by the European Community. • May 2006, presented to the Italian conference “Cittadinanza digitale: tecnologie per l’e-democracy a confronto” in Milan. The conference was organized by the LIC (Laboratorio di Informatica Civica) of the University of Milan. • July 2006, launch of the web site www.partecipa.net. • June 2006: the “kit e- democracy” was made available so that all public administrations could use it • November 2006: the Conference “Dialogare per decidere” was organized: it was about territorial policies promotion and e-democracy, in which experts, association members and representatives of local governments participated • September -December 2006, customisations of the kit. • October 25th: In the city of Ferrara, during the Linux Day, the project Partecipa.net was presented. • October 30 th: In the city of Piacenza, the project was presented, at the conference: “Partecipare è decidere”. • September 2006: Partecipa.net was included in DEMO-net which is a Network of Excellence funded by the European Commission’s sixth framework programme: Information Society Technologies IST. • November 27th, 28th 2006: TALeP (E-participation’s technologies). During the conference, the operation of the KIT was shown, particularly the experience made by the municipality of Modena • COMPA: in 2005 and 2006 the project was presented at COMPA (European Conference Hall for Public Communication).

Describe how and when the initiative was implemented by answering these questions
a. What were the strategies used to implement the initiative? In no more than 500 words, provide a summary of the main objectives and strategies of the initiative, how they were established and by whom.
• Regione Emilia-Romagna ICT plan • ICT and online services spreading in Emilia Romagna (73% of the municipalities have at least an Internet Public Access Point; 39% of internet users have already had a web contact with the public administration; more than 60% of the population considers e-democracy services useful) (Source: Benchmarking Regione Emilia Romagna, 2003-2005) • The LR 20/2000 regional city planning law requires focus on strategic and developmental aims Emilia-Romagna Region can to all effects be considered a favourable context for the plan: in the first place the region has been engaged for some years in the realization a Regional ICT plan.. The objective of the plan is to develop the "information society” all over the territory, equipping all public administrations with a broadband network to support the launch of new interactive services, using a free site with technical capabilities to support new interactive services. From 2001 the region has been actively engaged in developing the accessibility of its web: ERMES. The revision has been planned following the indications of the Law on the "Dispositions in order to favour access of the disabled”. Numerous studies have demonstrated that Emilia-Romagna's inhabitants are interested in the possibilities offered by e-democracy. 35.8% of Internet customers have had contacts with the PA, which places Emilia-Romagna among the first European regions. Another important element is that the partner’s administrations have for a long time realized various participative experiences, also using new technologies. This has been encouraged also by regional law 20/2000 which promotes the active citizens involvement in the territorial policies. All these experiences have been meaningful for the development of the plan.

b. What were the key development and implementation steps and the chronology? No more than 500 words
The main priorities are: • to define and create participation processes in an integrated manner; • to promote participation within and outside the administrations; • to provide a tool usable by all levels of PA; • to define, test and disseminate the methodology. The most important object of the project Partecipa.net is the realisation through both methodology and e-democracy Kit tools of a participation processes on a regional scale. Moreover, the plan from the beginning has envisaged the possibility of being reused. In fact, we have created neutral instruments which are also adapted and adaptable to other contexts and other policies. Methodology looking for the involvement of citizen through the kit. These actions were carried out: writing and diffusion of informative materials, to modernize the on line debate platform; to create the role of a moderator, who manages the debate. With reference to the technologies the kit integrates different services: SMS , newsletters via e-mail, forums, documents management and a search engine, polls, personal consultancies, and statistics.

c. What were the main obstacles encountered? How were they overcome? No more than 500 words
• Partnership: 22 public administrations + 9 associations all in one region; • Use, integrate and development of best practices developed regionally: UNOX1, Demos, CRC (regional centres of competence in e-gov); • results evaluation; • creation of a committed working community. In order to keep on pursuing the improvement of the resources which have been developed, the main tool for the realisation of participation processes is the e-democracy kit. The kit, is at the moment being tested by the partner administrations on the urban and territorial planning, according to regional regulations. The guiding principle becomes one of collaborative learning, for which all those involved increase the culture and the participation of political choices, expressing their own ideas and knowledge. From this point of view, they are having a concrete effect on territorial policy. This situation presupposes a strong involvement and engagement by the administrators. This kind of activity promotes transparency and civic participation.

d. What resources were used for the initiative and what were its key benefits? In no more than 500 words, specify what were the financial, technical and human resources’ costs associated with this initiative. Describe how resources were mobilized
Presently, the project is on going. This was the first year of activity for Partecipa.net. This year was devoted to the development and the implementation of the e-democracy’s kit and to the realization of the web site. Also, this year a few experiments participation processes of territorial planning. Policies were set up. The main benefits are the possibility of organising a concertation process on the decisions, of having increased transparency and creating a net of stable and meaningful relations based on the dialogue for the citizens and for the administration, which will be able to rely more on increased awareness and therefore on better governance.

Is the initiative sustainable and transferable?
Partecipa.net has an important product, the “e-democracy’s Kit". The participation tool kit has been thought of from the beginning as an easy tool to be implemented and used by all administrations. In other words, its greater benefit is its capacity to be adapted and reused. In fact it is made up of different tools that work also separately and can match the needs of different administrations citizens groups From an economic point of view the deployment of the kit software modules are cheap, which makes it easily reusable. The e-democracy kit is an optimal opportunity for dialogue and interaction between the various levels of administration and citizen's associations. Moreover it is necessary to highlight the context favourable to increase the utilization of the "e-democracy kit". The model that should be adopted was indicated in several recommendations by the Department of Public Function for administrative innovation. Finally the experience of using new technologies for the promotion of the participation process by young people could be an example for other administrations around the country. On the technological side the development is led as an Open Source community. A development team was made up of subjects directly responsible for development: Emilia-Romagna region, the Municipality of Modena and Bologna. The "open community” constitution guarantees therefore the dynamic of the development on open standards and continuity of independent management from the chosen technological solutions. Moreover, It will represent a guarantee on the spread and the reuse of technologies and the acquaintance of the project.

What are the impact of your initiative and the lessons learned?
The main weak points are: • Objective difficulty to create real regional integration, but a wide and structured network of partners: involvement of all the institutional levels, and of relevant associations • Physical Characteristic of the region that do not allow the total connection of broadband. This problem will be solved by the end of 2007 thanks to one project of the Region’s ICT plan, called Lepida: its objective is bring fibre optics, which allows digital data transmission over longer distances at higher speed, to all the publics actors of the territory. Lepida will reach also the mountain municipalities thanks to satellite. • Digital Divide: between the citizens, whit different education levels, culture's level and access to Internet. In order to diminish the digital divide the project is looking at the involvement of all civil society, specially to decide on Urban and Territorial policy. • Lack of a culture that stimulates the development of instruments for e-democracy. For this purpose there is a work area, on the web site, only for the project partners. This area is for learning, sharing and working together. Threats: • Suitable training of professionals. • This is a complex project, so the collaboration between partners, and cooperation between different institutional levels is very important • Lack of political consensus. This projects need political support to be implemented and become a reality. Partecipa.net has been designed as a project based on collaborative learning where all those involved partners (Pas, citizens associations) contribute to increasing the culture of participation to the political choices, in the spirit of a true governance.


Institution Name:		Regione Emilia-Romagna
Institution Type:		Public Organization
Contact Person:		Sabrina Franceschini
Title:		Project Manager
Telephone/ Fax:		+39 051 284531
Institution's / Project's Website:		+39 051 284472
E-mail:		sfranceschini@regione.emilia-romagna.it
Address:		Viale Silvani, 4/3
Postal Code:		40122
City:		Bologna
State/Province:		Bologna
Country:		Italy

The Problem

Solution and Key Benefits

Actors and Stakeholders

(a) Strategies

(b) Implementation

(c) Overcoming Obstacles

(d) Use of Resources

Sustainability and Transferability

Lessons Learned

Contact Information