Today, Chairman of the Economic Affairs Committee of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) Sven Sester met with the members of the Committee on Internal Affairs and Communications of the House of Representatives of Japan. The e-state solutions of Estonia were spoken about at the meeting.

“In Estonia, it is possible to enjoy digital lifestyle which is simple and comfortable, and at the same time also fast and effective,” Sester said. He pointed out as an example that digital signatures also brought an economic profit by saving estimatedly at least two percent of GDP in a year.

“Our vision is zero bureaucracy and the once-only principle,” Sester emphasised. “All that the state can do beforehand on its side has to be done in order to reduce the burden of the users.” Sester said that the state had created a system for declaring taxes which was extremely fast and convenient for the users; the e-school, where parents can observe the school activities of their children, was being used in cooperation with the public sector, and patients could follow their digital medical history and doctors wrote digital prescriptions.

Sester also spoke of e-governance, e-elections, the possibilities for using the ID-card in public and private sector, the principles of internet voting, and e-residency. He invited Japanese businesses and researchers to come to Estonia to develop the digital society together.

Sester also told the guests about the document management and legislative process information system of the Riigikogu and the Chancellery of the Riigikogu, and noted that the whole legislative process was paper-free.

One of the e-solutions used by the Riigikogu is the internet-based platform Rahvaalgatus.ee for submitting of collective addresses, discussing the proposals and communicating with the citizens.

Photos of the meeting.

Epp-Mare Kukemelk
Head of Communications
Chancellery of the Riigikogu

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www.riigikogu.ee