Skip to Content
Solution

Public sector interoperability

The EU’s Interoperable Europe Act (IEA) provides a framework for governments to better communicate and interact with citizens, businesses and other governments within and across borders.

But interoperability in the public sector is not only about aligning IT systems; there are legal, organizational and semantic considerations too. And the benefits extend to every corner of life, including trans-border business affairs.

At Capgemini, we apply our knowledge of interoperability, data sharing and open source to help you comply with all aspects of the IEA. Our holistic approach supports you every step of the way, from assessing what the Act means for you to implementing interoperable systems you can use and share.

The result: modern, seamless citizen services that save time and money while making life easier and better for everyone.

Read more about the Interoperable Europe Act (IEA)

Five benefits of interoperability

Working with us will not only mean that you comply with the Act. It will also help you to turn interoperability into an advantage for your organization and the citizens you serve.

Achieving interoperability will allow you to:

  1. Provide reliable and seamless digital citizen services by reusing proven solutions from other organizations.
  2. Save time and money by simplifying and automating the processes involved in delivering a service.
  3. Help to close the gap between the e-government services available for national users and those accessible for international users.
  4. Contribute to estimated annual cost savings of up to 5 billion EUR for citizens and businesses due to reduced wait times from streamlined cross-border services.
  5. Help to strengthen the digital single market while moving towards the global end goal of “interoperability by design”.

Only 50% of cross-border services can be accessed online

eGovernment Benchmark 2024

Interoperability in action: Aurélie’s story

Aurélie is a Sorbonne-educated teacher living in Paris. A French citizen, she is married to a German citizen, Markus. The couple plans to move to Berlin.
Below, you can follow Aurélie’s journey to having her teaching qualification recognized in Berlin today and in an interoperable future.

  1. Aurélie downloads the PDF application form and data protection declaration from the service portal of the Berlin government. Both need filling in by hand then scanning.

  2. She contacts the French authorities to get the evidence documents the Berlin authorities have asked for. They must be translated into German, some by a sworn translator – a service she must pay for.

  3. Aurélie uploads the documents to the service portal and fills out several online masks before submitting the application.

  4. The authority reviews her application manually, which takes several months, and sends the approval notice by post.

No automatic system for mutually recognizing qualifications gained in other member states means:

  • a lot of effort and a four-month wait for Aurélie

  • a big administrative burden on agencies in both countries

  • inefficient use of government budgets due to the amount of manual work and duplication.

  1. Aurélie opens her French digital citizen account, which is connected to the service portal of the Berlin government. In a few clicks, she arrives at the application function.

  2. After identifying herself through her EUid Wallet, she gives permission for her previously submitted data to be processed and begins the application process.

  3. The relevant documents in her EUid Wallet, along with others from the respective French registers, are automatically forwarded to Berlin.

  4. The Berlin authority uses automated processes to check the application and generate a decision document for a human to review. Within one day, it sends an approval decision to Aurélie’s French digital citizen account.

An automatic system for mutually recognizing qualifications gained in other member states means:

  • a quick, effortless process for Aurélie and an answer within a day of applying – so she and Markus can move to Berlin sooner

  • big time and money savings for the agencies involved due to automated processes and zero duplication

  • more time for public decision-makers to focus on complex, non-routine priorities.

The four levels of interoperability

To provide a cross-border citizen service, you need to address four areas of interoperability: legal, organizational, semantic and technical. That is why the IEA requires public sector organizations in the EU to assess any qualifying digital systems against all four.

At Capgemini, we have the people, skills and experience to support each area.

  1. Legal interoperability
    Our legal engineers help you identify relevant requirements, barriers and opportunities in the law, together with tailored organizational, semantic and technical solutions address them*.
  2. Organizational interoperability
    We document the processes, responsibilities and expectations involved in cross-border services. We then make sure they all line up, so it is easier to collaborate with other agencies involved in delivering cross-border services and data exchanges.
  3. Semantic interoperability
    We apply data standards such as the international DCAT-AP to ensure everyone involved in the project understands and interprets the data being shared in the same way.
  4. Technical interoperability
    We make sure your systems or software can release and ingest data flows in a secure way. This brings you closer to the end goal of “interoperability by design”, where IT solutions are modular so they can plug in anywhere.

*Capgemini does not provide legal or tax advisory services, which are reserved by law for the relevant professional groups.

Why Capgemini?

Capgemini is the leading global system Integrator of European origin with a strong public sector footprint in all segments, from public administration to tax and customs. We can apply this expertise and experience to advise on, build and implement interoperability solutions.

As a long-time partner of the European Commission, we have intimate knowledge of European policies and regulation. We evaluate the quality of online public services in Europe and identify service gaps, publishing our findings in the EU eGovernment Benchmark. Its 21st annual edition is the definitive source of information on the status of interoperability in Europe.

We have also been central to advancing data sharing in the public sector. And we have both commitment to, and capabilities in, open source, which lays the foundation for interoperability.

Research and insights

Report

eGovernment Benchmark Report 2024: Steady growth in digital government maturity

Expert perspectives

Customer experience, Digital inclusion, Innovation

The Interoperable Europe Act: What should public sector leaders know?

Dr. Jakob Efe
Jul 30, 2024

Meet our experts

Dr. Philipp Fuerst

VP Data-Driven Government & Offer Leader, Global Public Sector
“Government CIOs and IT experts barely need convincing of the benefits of interoperability. What has been missing is explicit guidance on the necessary non-technical requirements. The Interoperable Europe Act helps with exactly that. What’s more, with a critical mass of collaborators, individual public sector agencies will find that their investments into interoperable and sharable solutions will result in much bigger returns.”

Shashank Gopalakrishna

Core Modernization and Cloud, Public Sector Industry Platform
“While more and more EU public services are becoming digital, their level of interoperability remains a challenge. We can apply our expertise in digital transformation and strong understanding of the Interoperable Europe Act to help public sector organizations design and implement interoperable services. By allowing the efficient and secure exchange of data, our interoperability-by-design approach will ultimately result in seamless citizen services that are consistent and human-centric.”

Frederik Peters

Engagement director | Principal consultant | GovTech expert
“Govtech, which involves the use of innovative technologies by public organizations to address societal challenges, is crucial for modern governments to effectively manage disruptive innovations. By integrating advanced technologies responsibly, public organizations can enhance efficiency, transparency, and responsiveness. It’s essential to ensure that human needs, rights and values remain central to these developments.”