67 countries are gathering in Estonia, Tartu for the tenth e-Governance Conference

The 10^th e-Governance Conference, “Unlocking Digital Success”, will take place in Tartu on 22-23 May, focusing on key enablers of successful digital transformation. The two-day event will host more than 500 digital development decision-makers, policy implementers, and donors from 67 countries worldwide.

The conference will feature representatives from every continent, including 13 digital leaders or high-level officials from Angola, Chile, Costa Rica, Estonia, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Nigeria, Turks and Caicos, and Ukraine. With more than 70 speakers, the conference highlights notable leaders such as Alar Karis, President of Estonia, Paula Bogantes Zamora, Minister of Science, Innovation, Technology and Telecommunications, Costa Rica, Andrew Grotto, former Senior Director for Cybersecurity Policy at the White House (USA), and Lou Downe, former Design Director of the UK Government (UK).

Hannes Astok, Executive Director of the e-Governance Academy (eGA), noted that over the past decade, the Conference has become a pivotal hub for shaping digital governance strategies and fostering meaningful connections among digital transformation leaders and practitioners. “Emerging technologies, cybersecurity, and geopolitical challenges urge us to learn constantly and provide citizens with relevant digital skills and tools. The key to leading the digital transformation successfully is working together in the country and across borders and learning from each other,” he stated.

Astok also highlighted the Conference’s crucial impact in accelerating numerous digital cooperation projects. For example, the development of a data exchange platform in Djibouti and Benin, the creation of a digital country roadmap for Pacific countries, and cooperation with the governments of Aruba, Dominica, Namibia, and the Cayman Islands, and Turks and Caicos.

The theme of the 10th e-Governance Conference is “Unlocking Digital Success”, and it involves all key areas of digital transformation: people and their skills, modern technologies and their strategic selection, systematic processes, and governance for meaningful engagement with stakeholders and partners. 

“From designing services and developing a digital business environment to exploring digital innovations for green transition and unveiling the benefits of cybersecurity, these discussions are designed to address both the current and future challenges and opportunities in our digital world,”  Kristina Mänd, Programme Director of the 2024 Conference points out.

The Conference’s workshops and presentations will showcase the digital governance practices of 20 countries: Angola, Bangladesh, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Estonia, Finland, France, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Lithuania, Malawi, Moldova, Nigeria, Spain, Zambia, Turks and Caicos, the UK, Ukraine, and the USA.

Furthermore, the Conference showcases how Estonian IT companies’ digital innovations and the eGA’s competencies contribute to global digital advancement. “Ukraine is one of the most outstanding examples of this Estonian scale-up, reflecting the power and potential of Estonian digital solutions,” said Hannes Astok. Keen collaboration and strong political will have made Ukraine one of the most digitised societies in the world. All of this despite the war. Worth to examine and replicating for every country,” he added.

The two-day conference will take place on 22-23 May at the Estonian National Museum (ERM) in Tartu and will be streamed online at egovconference.ee. The conference also features an expo of digital solutions from Estonian and international companies. Together, 17 IT companies and organisations implementing digital governance solutions will be presented at the expo.

The speakers’ introductions, the program, and participation information can be found on the conference website https://2024.egovconference.ee/

The e-Governance Conference is a global event for digital governance for practitioners worldwide. This year, the Conference celebrates its 10th anniversary in Tartu, the European Capital of Culture 2024. The tenth e-Governance Conference is organised by the e-Governance Academy (eGA), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Estonian International Development Cooperation Centre (ESTDEV).

The e-Governance Academy (eGA) is a centre of excellence to increase the prosperity and openness of societies through digital transformation. Driven by our mission, the experts at eGA have, since 2002, partnered with over 290 organisations in 143 countries to build successful digital societies that improve their citizens’ lives, strengthen their economies, and deliver transparent, democratic, and effective public administrations. The core of our team of 100+ members consist of the architects and founders of the Estonian and Ukrainian e-states. Find out more >>> ega.ee

Dear journalist, you are welcome to attend the conference. For accreditation and media inquiries please contact anu.vahtra-hellat@ega.ee.