Good Governance for Digital Policies: How to Get the Most Out of ICT: The Case of Spains Plan Avanza

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Climate Change and Agriculture. Nuclear Production of Hydrogen. International Migration Outlook The development of the concept of the project itself, as well as the portal, was performed in a collaborative and consultative manner with panels of teachers and education professionals. In this way, the needs and considerations of end-users are incorporated from the start, improving the quality of the materials, their reach and their rate of utilisation. Indeed, educators have for some time recognized the utility of incorporating ICTs into curricula, as they allow for greater visualisation, interaction and student independence.

They also have the added benefit of helping students to learn to use ICTs, and become more comfortable utilising computers, software, and the internet from an early age. Animated and interactive digital content has been amongst the most successful and effective of educational tools. The AGREGA portal allows teachers and families to browse and download animated educational materials according to different subjects, grade-levels and even languages. Indeed, many materials are not only available in the different regional languages Catalan, Valencian, Gallegan and the Euskara language but also in English and French.

Additionally, for the purposes of professional training, educational simulations have been developed and added to the repository. Various ministries are creating informational materials for instance, on health habits, safety, gender equality, etc. While the programme itself is original, perhaps the most innovative aspect of the project is its consultative approach: This innovative co-production of services is particularly important in Spain, a country with different languages and diverse regional cultures which affect education curriculums and methods.

Finally, Plan Avanza is also collaborating internationally in order to increase the quantity of materials available and achieve cost-savings. The fact that Plan Avanza was unanimously passed in the Senate reveals how high levels of participation from stakeholders in the policy-making process can help increase political consensus and garner the critical support to pursue a large-scale initiative. However, the choice to design the Plan in an open and inclusive manner is accompanied by challenges typical to all consultative approaches: This challenge partly stems from the legal nature of CATSI which clearly defines the composition of membership.

Though the inclusion of membership stipulations was intended to seek a proportional representation of stakeholders, certain groups may have been underrepresented. While key operators from the ICT sector are present on the advisory board, SMEs and other sectors are underrepresented, for example. Other key ministries and members of civil society may also have low levels of participation in CATSI.

It seems this was not deliberate: Though centralised leadership and consultation have been important for Plan Avanza, a figurehead without sufficient and appropriate resources risks losing the capacity to fulfil its role. Given the nature of IS policies, adequate organisational, human and financial resources are essential: ICT deployment is largescale, the mix of socio-economic and technological dimensions requires specific skill-sets, and complex programmes necessitate significant dedication to coordination and management.

Additionally, budgetary and organisational resources must not only be sufficient but also agile, as technological change is fastpaced. A third critical governance factor for Plan Avanza, then, has been the design of an operational framework which provides the Plan with sufficient resources and flexibility. This was a strategic decision that has greatly contributed to the success of the Plan.

The typology of projects implemented under Plan Avanza requires a great deal of coordination and oversight to be successful. As a public corporation, it is subject to different regulations than other government institutions. This has proved to be a great benefit in specific initiatives within the Plan, such as in the deployment of ICT infrastructure and installation of ICT equipment, as it can act, in some specific occasions, more quickly than other areas within the diverse Ministies involved in Plan Avanza.

Because of the breadth and depth of programs and activities, information society strategies require qualified human resources drawing from a wide range of expertise and skills. For instance, it has a cadre of specialists varying from telecommunications engineers, programmers and designers, economists and statisticians, sociologists, business experts, lawyers, education and communication specialists, among others.

Staff can move from project to project as needs arise, as internal mobility within the different projects is implemented when needed. In addition to qualified human resources, information society strategies require adequate financial resources.

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The funding could originate from different individual sources for example national or local budgets, department or ministry budgets, the private sector, regional and international organizations e. EU or be a combination of these. As opposed to previous national IS strategies which drew funding directly mostly from the different ministries involved, Plan Avanza has introduced a different kind of financial model.

Under this model, there are a greater number of sources such as regional and local governments, non-profit organisations and, as of , Plan Avanza is included as such in the national budget, which guarantees it a certain allotment each year. Other OECD countries have also sought additional sources of funding. Throughout its first action plan, Plan Avanza has enjoyed a relatively stable budget, indicating sustained dedication to promoting the role of ICTs in Spanish society.

The average yearly budget has been 2. Between , the total budget has been close to 8. In terms of specific activities, initiatives under the digital economy pillar lead in terms of total budget allocations from to Spending for capacity-building and ICT skills as well as support of e-government initiatives in central government was lower in comparison. The Digital Economy pillar has accounted for the greatest amount of resources relative to the other three pillars Indeed, the fastest growing investment of the Plan has been in the promotion of innovation in the ICT sector, which has nearly tripled since Nevertheless, it has represented nearly half of the total digital economy budget.

Second phases are due to begin under Plan Avanza 2, and spending is. Activities in this area have been relatively evenly balanced between supporting local governments, and support for e-gov initiatives in the areas of health, education and justice. Growing support for the latter has largely been a result of an increasing number of ministries seeking support from Plan Avanza in the management of e-government reforms. Lastly investments with supporting central government e-government initiatives e. Over the four years, the pillar has accounted for approximately 8.

The largest area of spending has been on providing citizens with loans for the purchase of ICT equipment and services. However, funding for this initiative has decreased substantially towards the end of the first action plan. Plan Avanza Technical Office. Resource distribution can be one useful way of assessing the prioritisation of information society objectives.

However, budget allocations are not a perfect reflection since differences in the costs and investments needed to achieve goals are not taken into consideration. Therefore, qualitative surveys such as those performed for the OECD Information Technology Outlook, can complement budgetary information for a more comprehensive perspective of strategic preferences. The survey generally validates earlier observations based on the distribution of financial resources. Of top priority also to spur demand, priorities include increasing security and promoting accessible pricing of broadband.

This in turn should stimulate broadband uptake which remains below OECD averages see chapter 1 and cf. Plan Avanza aims to catch up with OECD countries in spurring innovation across industry sectors and follow-up programmes target unserved or underserved areas. Online Trust Promoting online trust Promoting Security of information systems and networks Privacy protection Consumer protection. Moreover, comparison of Spanish results with OECD averages reveals interesting insights into where future areas of work may focus.

Converting these investments into marketable and profitable products and services however, may require greater. Likewise, future priorities may include improving the business environment for ICT development and increasing competitiveness of this sector, where lower relative prioritisation has been recorded. Spanish ICT firms may also benefit from initiatives designed to attract foreign investments and reduce the present trade deficit in ICT goods.

Indeed, reforms in the public sector have thus far focused on the integration of ICTs as part of e-government reforms, rather than on the later stages of capacity-building for government employees. Since it has been shown that organisational changes must go hand-in-hand with the incorporation of ICTs, however, future initiatives may also consider pursuing such initiatives in SMEs and in the public administration. However, there are also challenges that accompany this approach.

Indeed, interviews with officials indicated that there is a high rate of turn-over since, after a few years of experience, personnel become increasingly attractive to private firms who recruit them. Furthermore, as a public organization, the SSTIS faces hiring restrictions in terms of the number of new staff that can be recruited. This can act as a bottleneck and restrict its flexibility. Another challenge of this model is achieving greater financial stability, which is essential for effective strategic planning and decision-making.

Agreements with other ministries for example, can be oneoff in nature and resource allocations for programmes can vary greatly by year for instance in the budget for central administration projects was null. Furthermore, as many Spanish regions lose eligibility to qualify for European funds in the coming Operational Programme, it is unclear what sources will be tapped to compensate for these loses. Strategic alignment with international and national policies Specifically, this alignment has permitted the strategy to i better capture synergies from shared objectives; and ii avoid duplication of policies across government.

Plan Avanza and i The presence of a supranational IS strategy helped substantiate the structure and objectives proposed by CATSI, helping to build consensus around its objectives, priorities and main beneficiaries. Furthermore, directives from i exerted top-down pressure for Spain to converge with other European countries in key IS dimensions, validating the rationale for the strategy and instilling a sense of urgency for the need to foster the knowledge economy in the country. Additionally, the synchronicity between i and Plan Avanza both were designed and launched in the same years helped increase awareness amongst Spanish policymakers and stakeholders of the importance of building a strong information society.

As we have seen, Plan Avanza is a transversal strategy with objectives spanning multiple policy domains, beneficiaries and levels of government.

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It is important for the strategy, then, to be well-aligned with relevant national strategies in order to maximise its contribution in the areas where implicated. As a component of both INGENIO and the National Reform Programme NRP , Plan Avanza is expected to contribute to objectives ranging from boosting innovation and competitiveness, creating employment opportunities, increasing human capital, and modernising the public sector.

Indeed, the Plan ensures that ICTs play a prominent role in a wide array of policy domains, adapting its initiatives to fit the ongoing objectives of other strategies. Additionally, alignment with other high-level national policies reduces duplication of ICT initiatives across government, avoiding waste of resources.

Under the umbrella of the NRP, policy roles are clearly defined: Therefore initiatives are not duplicated but rather, through better alignment, they are designed to complement each other and address both the demand and supply dimensions needed for value creation. Indeed, Plan Avanza provides the critical training necessary for the behavioural and cultural changes needed to make e-government reforms successful, while the Ministry is responsible for the corresponding modernisation reforms that accompany e-government policies.

As a centralised supporter of e-government initiatives, Plan Avanza helps improve interoperability and security. Likewise, the Plan benefits as e-government reforms are the ideal setting for introducing ICTs and ICT training into the public administration. E-government and Plan Avanza synergies. One such example of the synergies achieved between Plan Avanza and the Ministry of the Presidency is with the portal, an online one-stop stop for government services bundled according to customer profiles and life events paying taxes, getting married, retirement, etc.

Plan Avanza and the Ministry have an agreement in which red. Plan Avanza provides training to staff and support in the development of a secure and authenticated platform that links these registrars to the central node. This programme is also co-financed by the Ministry of the Presidency. Clarifying the mandate of information society strategy vis a vis other national policies is crucial in the design phase. Indeed, as economic policy and innovation policy are ever more intertwined in the knowledge economy, alignment of Plan Avanza with the Spanish INGENIO strategy will become increasingly important.

Indeed, both the Ministry for Science and Innovation and Plan Avanza have been active in the following fields: Development of technological platforms for information-sharing and innovation. Plan Avanza has created platforms for educational contents as well as for information-sharing between universities pursuing innovative projects in the audiovisual sector. To similar ends, the Ministry of Science and Innovation has financed the construction of technological platforms in several sectors- from transport, technology, agriculture, energy, security and defence, amongst others.

The ministry also works with science and technology parks in building instruments for information-sharing. Support for development of the ICT sector. Plan Avanza provides support to the ICT sector through some similar instruments. A second challenge of aligning ICT objectives to other national objectives arises during evaluation, as objectives become interdependent and initiatives are increasingly run in parallel. It is difficult, for example, to pinpoint the contribution of Plan Avanza in terms of improving public sector efficiency, when initiatives are designed to complement each other and are often implemented in conjunction.

Are efficiency gains realised from new ICT equipment or procedural reforms that streamlined operations? Strategic policy sequencing and prioritisation Plan Avanza was able to prioritise and plan activities in such a way that was conductive to greater impact. This foresight and strategic thinking during policy design was important and consisted in the following decisions: Within the digital public services pillar, Plan Avanza policy-makers chose to focus initially on the deployment of ICT equipment, before directing efforts towards the development of services.

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The aim was to focus first on creating a critical mass of demand in order to incentivise the private sector and government to respond. This approach was successful, since it was difficult to predict beforehand which services would be most utilised, and what the rate of take-up would be. Efforts on the development of services for these cards are now ongoing. The first Plan Avanza action plan stressed large-scale deployment of ICT infrastructure- namely, mobile phone, broadband and digital television.

The Plan also supported integration of ICTs directly in households and schools- financing computers and internet access. The second action plan, in turn, has shifted emphasis on utilisation and take-up of services and development of digital content, particularly in the private sector. Indeed, unlike previous plans which took on both challenges simultaneously with limited resources, Plan Avanza concentrated a large portion of its budget in the initial phase in technology, later shifting that budget towards more socioeconomic objectives.

This indicates the intention a greater balance between infrastructure development and take-up in the next steps of implementation. Strategic policy sequencing and prioritisation requires, by nature, a long-term perspective. Closer collaboration is needed to establish a long-term perspective on shared goals like economic development, e-government, and capacity-building. Supportive Legal and Regulatory Framework A strong information society also requires legal and regulatory intervention in order to support ongoing and future initiatives. As has done the Digital Austria strategy, Plan Avanza has sponsored and pushed forward key pieces of legislation which have improved the ability of the Plan to intervene in the public sector and to improve accessibility.

Some of the key pieces of legislation supported by Plan Avanza include: While it is the Ministry of the Presidency who is responsible for upholding this law, Plan Avanza has a strong role in assisting government in being able to comply. Personal information may only be used or disclosed to a third party with consent from the individual. Copyright law is an area where Plan Avanza has yet to become involved in.

Indeed, protection of copyright and intellectual property on the Internet is a key to ensuring strong incentives for the creation of digital content continues. Early attention granted to important governance issues during policy design has yielded some positive results which have differentiated the Plan from previous strategies. Some challenges remain, however, for Plan Avanza 2. These may include increasing the flexibility of the consultation process in order to increase inclusion, strengthening mediums for communicating with stakeholders outside of CATSI, and considering ways by which the SSTIS and Plan Avanza can overcome bottlenecks to growth.

In particular, the human resource management is an important issue, as it is expected that policies to be pursued under Plan Avanza 2 will increase in complexity and diversity. Measures to mitigate this have already been taken e. Furthermore, since Plan Avanza has been centralised under the SSTIS, momentum of the strategy has surely improved; however the trade-off may have been relatively less high-level co-ordination in policy design.

A greater degree of collaboration with other ministries could be achieved in order to extract greater more synergies from policies. Certainly, having a better idea of what ministries will require from Plan Avanza in the future may help policy-makers make better decisions about how to incorporate ICTs into these initiatives and improve planning. These aspects will be further examined in a later stage of the project following interviews with other central government stakeholders. In the context of economic recovery, for instance, it is important that the Plan clarify its lines of action regarding the promotion of the ICT sector, in order to avoid gaps and duplication in this policy domain.

Better co-ordination with the Ministry of Science and Innovation could increase collaboration and delineate specific responsibilities. Indeed, greater prioritisation of the development of the ICT sector under the next action Plan may require greater alignment. Other ministries may become more prevalent under the context of economic recovery, for instance, the Ministry of Work and Immigration.

Good governance in policy design can contribute to improved outcomes; however, these efforts must be extended also into policy implementation in order for citizens, businesses and the public sector to ultimately benefit. Information Society strategies require adequate implementation frameworks and tools to ensure concerted action and cost-effectiveness.

The Plan Avanza implementation framework includes a series of instruments and tools designed to fit the particular implementation challenges faced by the Plan e. Some remaining obstacles for the implementation of such tools are also highlighted. Implementation tools for enhancing co-operation 2.

Information Society strategies work across different entities and administrative boundaries, and require instruments allowing the joint contribution of actors in different sectors and levels of government. Many of the implementation tools adopted by the Plan have been in response to the decentralised administrative context in which it operates. As such, Autonomous Communities have large roles in the delivery of health and education services, as well in social policy, economic and 54 regional development policy, agriculture policy, environmental policy, tourism, transport and infrastructures.

Local governments municipalities , on the other hand, are mainly responsible for urban planning, maintaining local infrastructures and public spaces, local tourism, management of city public transport, traffic and roads, and local 55 security. The implications of this administrative structure for a large-scale and transversal strategy like Plan Avanza are apparent. In the context of devolved competencies and fiscal federalism, the Plan is set to collaborate with regional and local governments, who are key players in all policy domains implicated in IS initiatives: Collaboration with multiple stakeholders can be a challenge given significant inter-regional variations within Spain along many lines including terrain, demographics, economic composition, levels of innovation and competitiveness and, of course, in levels of ICT-use and coverage.

In response to the decentralised administrative structure, Plan Avanza has applied a series of implementation instruments such as joint-implementation frameworks which foster co-operation. These will be presented and discussed in the following section along with other tools used by the Plan: What is interesting in these instruments is their innovative use or adaptation to meet specific objectives or meet specific needs e. Many Plan Avanza programmes are implemented via bilateral co-implementation agreements. Most span the length of the action plan. Via addendums to high-level agreements. Tend to be drafted on a yearly basis.

Tend to span several years. Utilised only for red. May span several years though depends on project. Once a high-level agreement has been established with a region, addendums are supplemented on a programme-by-programme basis. In cases of co-financing, the amounts provided by the SSTIS in these kinds of agreements vary by region and programme, as these allotments are determined by criteria established by the SSTIS, such as the status of the region with regards to EU criteria convergence and phasing-out regions can receive more funding from Plan Avanza.

For some projects, an addendum must be created between the public enterprise and the regional government in question. The nature of these addenda tends to be quite detailed: Lastly, in cases where a Plan Avanza programme is an e-government initiative or requires an ICT intervention in the development or delivery of a public service, additional co-implementation agreements are necessary between the SSTIS and the other ministry implicated.

Similarly, projects for the distribution of eID cards in the different regions require co-financing by the Ministry of Interior. The participation of the Ministry in the agreement is necessary to ensure projects are rolled out across the country. Otherwise, there would be no obligation on part of the regional governments to collaborate. For example, the Ministry of Health must take the initiative to establish one high-level programme for the integration of clinical records in a central database, since Plan Avanza has no legal competencies in the area of health.

The main benefits experienced are: Provides a formal mechanism for vertical and horizontal co-ordination. Plan Avanza does not have legal competencies in policy-domains such as health, security, education or justice. Reduces implementation burden on Plan Avanza and increases its reach. The sheer quantity of stakeholders implicated in the information society is extensive, and the task of rolling out Plan Avanza initiatives across the country is an ambitious undertaking for any government agency.

Co-financing is a tool that increases resources available for common projects. Creates powerful incentives for greater participation and co-operation. Many regional governments pursue their own information society initiatives independently, and cofinancing on behalf of SSTIS acts as a powerful incentive to participate and align regional policies to the national IS strategy, since this in turn fortifies their own resources. For example, a regional innovation programme for the ICT sector can align objectives to Plan Avanza by promoting development of the same kinds of ICT products or services, for instance and combine national funds with its own to pursue this objective.

The regime also creates a sense of positive competition between regions. If one region is receiving funds for a particular IS programme, other regions are eager to seek support in order not to be left behind. Finally, the co-implementation creates incentives for improved performance and management on the part of regional and local governments, since these have a vested interest in ensuring their invested resources yield valuable results. These aspects will be further examined in the second part of the project where aspects of the implementation of the Plan at local level will be examined in more detail.

These incentives have been built into the implementation framework of the programme, and proved to be successful in attaining greater and more active participation from stakeholders. The eHealth initiative, implemented by Plan Avanza and the Ministry of Health and Social Policy alongside regional governments, seeks to increase the capacity of the national health service central node, as well as interconnect hospitals and pharmacies via this node, thereby allowing citizens to be able to access medical records and prescriptions throughout the country.

This initiative is a massive undertaking, both technologically and in terms of the number of stakeholders involved. Additionally, extensive training for nurses, doctors, hospital staff and pharmacists are provided if technological changes were to take hold. One of the main challenges for the Plan was establishing high levels of co-operation from the stakeholders involved: Regional governments in Spain are responsible for many of the competencies regarding the delivery of health services, and a central node without the synchronisation of the majority, if not all, of the 17 autonomous regions could be risky and lead to poor results.

Indeed, it defeats the purpose of centralising patient information if information is incomplete or inaccessible from certain regions. Though there are significant efficiency gains and cost-savings for regions who participate in the programme, the costs of implementing the project are high in terms of resources and time. It requires significant managerial oversight on behalf of the regional governments to help monitor hospitals and pharmacies. Incentives to overcome these challenges were built into the governance structure of the implementation plan.

By having a vested interest in the success of the program, regional governments are more likely to monitor and evaluate hospitals and pharmacies in their region, as well as participate actively with red. By , all 17 regions had their health cards synchronised to the national node, and pilot projects to test the exchange of information are beginning. Capitalises on local knowledge. The information society needs in Spain vary significantly from region to region, and local players are often the most knowledgeable about the particular context of local citizens and firms.

This can not only improve effectiveness during implementation, but also increases the responsiveness of projects to localised demands. Allows for a demand-driven approach. For instance, the region of Extremadura received greater funding for building technology networks, while the government of La Rioja was allocated greater funding for the extension of broadband. Other implementation instruments 9.

When a regional government establishes an addendum agreement with the enterprise, the SSTIS becomes responsible for overseeing the implementation of a project from inception to the final evaluation. Project and technology managers partner to maximise synergies and work more efficiently together.

For example, project managers can better plan activities knowing the nature of ICT deployment involved and tenders can be more specific with regards to the technology solutions required. Firms, NGOs and even local governments are then able to submit requests for specific projects. Grants are also provided to firms to promote innovation and software development, and to local governments to incorporate ICTs into their front and back-office activities. Priority given to firms working on technology for the development of new services via digital TV and radio, mobile television, and multimedia home platform.

More than 24, families have benefitted since Any Spanish citizen who resides in Spain. Young people and firms. Close to 3, persons. Approximately 24 months to return. Programme budget of 25 million Euros. Amounts granted in reach This is indeed an innovative tool for greater digital inclusion, as citizens and businesses can go to any participating bank to apply for and receive the loan.

The reach of Plan Avanza is truly increased through this method of administering the loans. Though no formal governance framework for co-financing is utilised in such cases, cooperation with regional institutions remains high. The programme receives support from regional communities and business associations to raise awareness about the programme amongst firms. Conditionalities may be attached to licenses in order to ensure that the private sector complies with certain key objectives of the Plan. EUR 65 million The E-GSM Plan lasted three years until terminating in December of , and was implemented via direct commercial negotiation between operators and municipalities.

If commercial negotiation failed or administrative barriers were found, operators were free to change and try another population centre included in the list of general interest areas drawn up by the SSTIS. Through this commission, the SSTIS mitigated implementation issues between operators and stakeholders in the granting of permits, speeding the process of deployment. By around 5, population centres and every nuclear plant and oil refinery and their km radius area had been covered where 1. Since establishing these contracts requires time, administrative effort and negotiations between the implicated parties, efficiencies could be realised from adding stipulations in high-level agreements which create flexibility in implementation Hospitals and pharmacies Source: A third challenge for the Plan is optimising the co-implementation agreements, for example, to push for inter-regional convergence.

By determining criteria for their portion of the financing, the SSTIS can allocate greater amounts of resources to regions that lag farther behind in certain key ICT indicators. Another important challenge arising from co-implementation is differences in regional legislative and budgetary calendars. Delays resulting from such discrepancies could increase the risk of inefficiencies and wasted resources.

This means that the incentives for participating and improving operational performance, on the part of local municipalities, may be weaker than in their regional counterparts. Indeed, as we have seen in the first chapter, the costs for local governments to pursue e-government and IS initiatives may be higher due to lack of capacities and economies of scale. In sparsely populated areas, if few citizens utilise the services, an incentive to participate in the Plan may not exist.

As a result, local governments may simply choose not to participate if the amount of the grants is insufficient to compensate the costs of implementation and maintenance. Lastly, a significant bottleneck could stem from the contracting regime governing the Plan. Rigidities remain, for example, with regards to technical specifications.

Once a contract has been granted, for instance, Spanish contracting law makes it difficult and time-consuming to change or substitute the originally-approved terms of the contract. This is particularly troublesome in an area where technologies change so rapidly. If an improvement in the technology available occurs during the course of. Depending on the programme, may be fully responsible for project management, or may share oversight with SSTIS.

ICT development and deployment, participate in project management and testing. Innovative communication tools include various websites, a Plan Avanza twitter feed and blog, advertising campaigns, press conferences, newsletters and other publications, demonstrative events, and hosting networking events like the International Forum for Digital contents. FICOD, for instance, gathers each year professionals from across the globe in industries such as television, advertising, cinema, music, video games, digital publications, online education, and digital journalism.

The Forum forms part of the. The communications and marketing element of the Plan has certainly proved beneficial in supporting implementation: In order then to raise awareness about the transition itself, convey the benefits of digital television to stakeholders and inform citizens about the measures they had to take, a strong communications strategy was implemented alongside the technical component of the programme.

Failing to couple these two dimensions would have greatly increased the risk of a large numbers of households being left without television reception as well as high levels of dissatisfaction with government. This is a popular Spanish catch-phrase referring to the ills of procrastination, in essence, urging citizens not to wait until the last minute to purchase the necessary equipment to receive digital signals. With a budget of six million Euros, the communications strategy created television, internet, radio, and newspaper advertisements that ran for one month during the holiday season.

The Plan strategically chose this season, despite the additional expense, to encourage citizens to purchase the DTT equipment as gifts for family and friends. As of May, , more than 23 million de-codifiers had been sold and The same philosophy of addressing the technological and social aspects of the ICT initiatives in parallel has been extended to many other Plan Avanza programmes with proven success. Screenshot of campaign poster Source: As a result, the Plan could run the risk of becoming under-valued by the Spanish government and civil society. In turn, this may lead to the allocation of fewer resources.

Additionally, citizens and firms benefitting from faster and more efficient public services may be unaware of the role of the Plan in supporting their development. Monitoring and Evaluation Establishing an effective and powerful oversight mechanism is important in order to incentivise better performance from managers and stakeholders, evaluate how the Plan affects targeted beneficiaries, determine resource allocations and improve planning, and to provide input for decisions regarding the strategic direction of the Plan.

This is a challenging undertaking, however, given that defining and measuring performance in information society strategies is notoriously difficult: Measures state of telecommunications and the information society in the country; performs international benchmarks and comparisons. Evaluate progress and operational performance of specific programmes and projects; utilised as input for project managers and the Technical Office.

At project level, smaller joint committees between project managers also monitor execution. The key performance indicators KPIs utilised are designed to capture both the operational dimensions of the project and the potential immediate impact. For instance, KPIs for a programme which holds demonstrative sessions for SMEs regarding software include not only the number of participating SMEs, the percentage of budget utilised and the number of sectors represented, but also the percentage of firms who adopt the technologies and the satisfaction rates of attendees from the sessions.

Since measuring the socio-economic impact of information society strategies is challenging, joint committee data on satisfaction and adoption rates can reveal much about the value contributed by the strategy. Ad-hoc reports are then published up to three times per year. Lastly, the Office maintains an online balanced scorecard application accessible only to Plan Avanza staff designed to help link project inputs percentage of budget utilised, for instance with project outputs number of milestones and targets reached.

This allows policy-makers and managers not only to evaluate operations, but also to flag any risks and issues that may hinder the Plan serious delays, resource shortages, etc. Finally, the highest tier of the monitoring and evaluation framework is the National Observatory for Telecommunications and the Information Society, depending and reporting to the Secretary of State and organically run and managed by red.

The Observatory is responsible for assessing the progress of key information society indicators at the country level. Information is drawn from the Technical Office but also international sources, the private sector, think tanks, the National Institute of Statistics, and academics. In these reports, international comparisons and benchmarks are often made in order to present Spanish results in a wider context. While the Technical Office and Joint Committees provide input into the question of whether Plan Avanza is operating effectively and efficiently, these kinds of reports and analysis yield valuable information regarding how the Plan contributes to high-level national objectives.

Other OECD member countries have also formed national Observatories to monitor key IS indicators and run continual diagnostics on areas to be improved. However, some gaps in oversight remain. For instance, while joint project committees are generally effective in compiling project KPIs, programmes in which a third party is involved often lack the same degree of supervision. In particular, programmes implemented via grants often transfer funds and implementation responsibilities to local municipalities, businesses, NGOs and other actors, and these programmes have fewer associated KPIs and oversight and evaluation mechanisms.

Grants given to NGOs to design training programmes for women or develop better ICT equipment for disabled people are monitored according to the percentage of funds distributed by the SSTIS, however reporting the operational and impact results of the projects is not required as a condition of funding. A second important challenge is consolidation of information from different stakeholders by the Technical Office, and introducing common reporting methodologies. Indeed, while information on operational progress is important, further emphasis should be placed on the satisfaction of end-users who participated in the Plan.

Pre and postproject comparisons of adoption rates, ICT utilisation and ICT skills, greater follow-up of Plan Avanza beneficiaries for example, in the labour market, wages, in revenues, etc. Though this slight shift in focus is certainly a costly exercise, it would better help evaluate the contribution of the Plan. The final peer review report will further explore the results of surveys of citizens, businesses and the public administrations directly influenced by the Plan.

Managing quality to sustain results Plan Avanza has recognized that successful implementation does not end with deployment of ICTs. A critical ingredient to successful implementation, particularly for information society strategies, is ongoing issue and quality management to ensure that investments in infrastructures continue to yield positive results in the long-term.

Avanza-Information Society Strategy for Spain by PSOE Ceuta - Issuu

In IS societies, ensuring sustainability and quality often translates into the provision of technical support. Indeed, because of the technical nature of many IS initiatives, stakeholders often require ongoing assistance with issues such as security, incidents, maintenance, testing, and hosting. To this end, the Plan has established an integrated management services centre, currently managed by red.

This centre is headquartered in Madrid and includes a centralised help desk, a specialised technical support team, a security management service and a quality management team. Additionally, the office produces reports tracking incidents and incident resolutions across different programmes.

Smaller centres are located throughout the country and lend their services to many Plan Avanza programmes including the eID cards programme, Internet in schools and universities, telecentres in rural areas, the. Providing regional and local governments with this kind of support sustains the positive impacts of ICT initiatives, since many stakeholders lack the technical resources or expertise to maintain the programmes independently. Without this critical support, there was a risk that the centres would be unsustainable, as many local governmentsparticularly in rural areas- lack the resources to maintain these infrastructures.

Specifically, the telecentres program creates public Internet hubs to reduce the urban-rural digital divide. These centres not only provide access to computers, printers, broadband and other basic ICT equipment, but are also centres for ICT training and informative sessions. The project was co-financed by red.

Upon termination of the programme in , close to 3, telecentres had been installed, along with 19, workstations. The telecentre network covers a population of 6. One main challenge for the Plan with regards to quality management is rolling the service out to other key Avanza programmes, as presently not all projects are covered by this degree of technical support.

Local governments, for example, could benefit greatly from a centralised point of assistance and incident resolution for the instalment of the Avanza Local software packages. But how has the application of policy tools and strategic design translated into results for citizens, businesses and government? What value has Plan Avanza contributed to its primary beneficiaries and stakeholders? The second phase of the peer review will attempt to address these questions, and draw information from direct beneficiaries- citizens, businesses, and the public administration- to assess the impact of the Plan thus far, and identify strengths and weaknesses that could be taken into consideration.

Chief Adviser of Cabinet. Deputy Director in Telecommunications Regulation. Director for the Promotion of Electronic Government. General Manager Carlos Romero. Secretary General Luis Palomo.