Emphasises Importance of Registers in the Development of the Information Society and E-Government

A BIT OF HISTORY

The Register Nordic (REGNO) conference brings together representatives of official registers from the countries of the Baltic Sea region.  These events have been held since 2000, and they help to ensure collaboration among Baltic and Scandinavian institutions which develop and maintain registers.  The first conference in 2000 and the fourth in 2004 were held in Tallinn, Estonia, the event in 2001 and 2006 was organised in Vilnius, Lithuania, and the 2003 conference took place in R�ga, Latvia.
The aim of the REGNO conferences is to ensure the exchange of experience and information at the international level, focusing on issues which have to do with the development of public registers � interoperability between registers and information systems, ensuring the quality of E-services, ensuring secure application of information and communications technologies and solutions, etc.
The conferences have brought together participants from 25 countries, and many useful discussions have been the result.  Representatives of the various countries have been able to share experiences and best practice in relation to government registers, national information systems and the development of public services.

REGNO 2007

The conference was opened by the Special Assignments Minister for Electronic Government Affairs of Latvia, Ina Gudele.  She noted that REGNO was initially a seminar for the countries of the Baltic Sea region, but in subsequent years it expanded substantially, becoming an important international forum which attracts high-level officials and E-government policy developers from more than 20 countries.  These include Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, the United Kingdom, Estonia, Iceland, Israel, Latvia, Norway, Finland, Sweden, etc.
Gudele:  �The most important issues at this conference involve the exchange of information among national registers and their interoperability at the national level so that services can be provided to local residents.  The same is true at the international level so that major national functions can be implemented.  A second key issue is the safety of data and security in national registers both in physical terms and in terms of software support.  We must be convinced that data of national importance are completely secure against cyber-attacks which could threaten their operations and, accordingly, the normal functioning of the state.�
The general director of the Finnish Population Register Centre, Hannu Luntiala, spoke about the importance of national registers in the development of the Information Society and in the provision of services that are in line with public needs:  �Registers store enormous volumes of data, and they are a key cornerstone for the development of the Information Society.  It is important to ensure data protection, safety and personal privacy so that people can trust the register.  This is an endless process which requires enormous investments of work, resources and experience.�
Particular focus at the conference was on the EU Directive 2003/98/EC on the reuse of public sector information.  Various aspects of this directive were considered in parallel REGNO sessions.
Minister Gudele said that the R�ga conference represented a shift in REGNO activities, adding that decisions taken at the event will determine specific directions for the further development of national registers.
Delegates concluded the conference by approving a declaration on what has been achieved and what should be done in future so as to develop registers and E-government fully in compliance with public needs.

More detailed information about the REGNO 2007 conference can be found on the conference homepage:  http://www.regno2007.lv/eng/index.php?p=0.