Welcome address and keynote
Focusing on putting citizens first.
Speaker
Alasiri, Ali Nasser, CEO of e-Government Program, KSA
Why Governments are Putting Citizens First
A discussion focusing on how and why governments are moving to build services around users, and how we can achieve horizontal services in vertically-organised governments.
Panel
Mohammad Jameel Sear, Associate Partner, Digital Government & Public Sector Advisory Services, MENA, EY
Renaud Seligmann, Practice Manager, Governance Global Practice, World Bank
Jessica McEvoy, Deputy Director, Government Digital Service, United Kingdom
Ott Vatter, Managing Director, E-Residency, Estonia
Mikhail Pryadilnikov, Deputy Director, Analytic Center for the Russian Government, Russia
Adel Asiri, VP- Standards and Digital programs at e-government program (Yesser)
Programme Governance and Finance
Departmental heads and ministers may be keen to build combined services, but they remain individually accountable to national leaders, legislatures and the public – so governance systems must reconcile vertical accountability with horizontal management. And cross-departmental collaboration raises issues over allocating the costs and benefits of new services. How should capital and running costs be shared? How to allocate user fees and efficiency savings? And what forms of central funding and support best promote effective shared programmes?
This session will consider the governance arrangements best suited to carrying cross-cutting programmes from concept to launch, via design, development, testing and construction. Covering strategic decision-making, programme management, financial structures and investment returns, it will explore both the key challenges and the proven solutions.
Panel
Ahmad Alswahiyan, Deputy, Ministry of Finance, KSA
Jessica McEvoy, Deputy Director, Government Digital Service, United Kingdom
Mikhail Pryadilnikov, Deputy Director, Analytic Center for the Russian Government, Analytic Center for the Government of the Russian Federation
Jobbágy László, Managing Director, Digitális Jólét Nonprofit Kft, Hungary
Paulius Vertelka, Director, INFOBALT, Lithuania
Naser AlKhelaiwi, General Director, Deputyship of Finance and Admin Affairs, Ministry of Health, KSA
Data
At the heart of unified public services lies data-sharing. And when governments get it right, the rewards are enormous – supporting seamless, cross-departmental operations, and allowing civil servants to better target, personalise and appraise the impact of public services. But departments’ ability to exchange information is often hampered by legislative, regulatory, cultural and technical barriers. This session will consider both the technical agendas – such as security, registers and sharing protocols – and the issues around privacy and consent, mapping out ways to win users’ and civil servants’ support for the secure, effective sharing of data across government.
Panel
Jane Wiseman, CEO, Institute for Excellence in Government, USA
John Kedar, Director International Engagement, Ordnance Survey, United Kingdom
Ott Vatter, Managing Director, E-Residency, Estonia
Basem Aljedai, VP of Innovation & Digital Capability, Yesser (e-Government Program), KSA
Technologies
Modern cross-cutting services demand the application of a range of technologies, from identity verification through APIs and cloud to analytics. This session will explore how to approach key decisions, such as whether to use centrally-provided ‘Government as a Platform’ processes or build on a participating department’s core infrastructure. And it will examine the emerging tech – such as Artificial Intelligence and blockchain – which looks set to transform the menu facing digital leaders.
Panel
Medhat Amer, Senior Executive Partner – Gartner
Talal AlBakr, STC Solutions, KSA
Stefaan Verhulst, Co-founder and Chief Research and Development Officer, New York University, USA
Prof. Dr. Obi, Professor Emeritus and Chairman, Institute of e-Government, Waseda University
Abdulaziz Alsoliman, IT Director, Government – Saudi Information Technology Company, KSA
Culture and capabilities
Some of the biggest barriers to developing cross-cutting services are rooted in departmental cultures – many of which tend to look up to ministers rather than out across government, and have evolved in environments that prize competition over cooperation. And building the next generation of digital services will demand next-generation skills: civil services are working hard to develop and recruit the digital practitioners and leaders they need. This session will consider these crucial challenges, examining how civil servants can develop the cultures and capabilities to successfully launch cross-departmental services.
Panel
Renaud Seligmann, Practice Manager in the Governance Global Practice, World Bank
Chris Ferguson, Director, Government Digital Service, United Kingdom
Sebastian Chua, Head of Procurement, Health Promotion Board, Singapore
Emmanuel Kgomo, Deputy Director-General, Department of Public Service and Administration, South Africa
Rob van Wuijtswinkel, City Manager and CEO, City of Arnem, The Netherlands
Mohammed Alkabti, STC Group, Culture Head