The Promising Digital Economy of Ireland in Europe
Mohammad J Sear
Digital Gov. & Public Sector Consulting Leader, Middle East and Africa (MENA) at EY
Ireland currently holds an overall strong position when it comes to the digital economy in the Europe region. This has been brought about by many factors, including the country's competitive edge in several key industries, increased investment in the ICT sector and the high share of people with basic and expert digital skills.
These factors have all led to major economic growth in Ireland with respect to the digital economy and government and will continue to provide benefits in years to come as well.
Ranking in the top 5 in the 2022 edition of DESI.
Ireland ranks 5th among the other 27 EU Member States in the 2022 edition of the Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI).?
The average yearly relative growth of its DESI score in the last five years is approximately 8.5%, one of the highest in the EU.?
As I mentioned before, the dimensions where Ireland performs well are human capital and connectivity.
The country is a top performer for mobile broadband take-up and has one of the highest ICT specialists (including females), well above the EU average.
Moreover, Ireland ranks 6th in digital public services. In 2021, the share of e-government users increased remarkably from 67% to 92%, according to the report.
The public services provided to businesses and citizens are highly digitalised, and many internet users engage actively with e-government services.
In 2021, the country continued to review and improve the user-friendliness and quality of the public services provided by the government services portal 'Gov.ie.'
Ambitious regarding the online provision of key public services
Ireland has set a highly ambitious target of 100% online provision of critical public services.
Additionally, it aims to ensure that by 2030, 90% of these services are actually used online, and more than 80% of its eligible citizens are using its MyGovID solution.
Having 80% digital ID coverage is a target set by the European Union.
In order to ensure it reaches its goals, Ireland continues implementing the 'once-only' principle and promoting data sharing across the public sector.
The onset of subsections of the Data Sharing and Governance Act 2019 in 2021 enabled the creation of The Data Governance Board.
It assesses and recommends approval of data-sharing agreements between different Public Bodies.?
The formation of the Board was a key milestone as it plays a pivotal role in the delivery of a new framework for data governance across the Public Service.?
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Digital Public Administration Legislation and Communications?
Following the announcement of the development of a new National Digital Strategy two years ago, the government launched the new national digital strategy, Harnessing Digital – The Digital Ireland Framework, in February 2022.
This framework sets out a pathway to support Ireland's ambition to be a digital leader at the heart of European and global digital developments.
It strongly emphasises inclusiveness, security and safety, strong governance and well-resourced regulatory legislation.?
The government aimed to drive and enable the digital transition across the entire Irish economy and society.?
That's why one month later, the country published the Connecting Government 2030 in March 2022, setting out an approach to deliver digital government for all.
What's next?
While Ireland performs well in digital public services for both businesses and citizens and scores high in open data, its performance regarding pre-filled forms is below the EU average.
Ireland's current digital economy is promising, but there are still many challenges to overcome in order for it to continue staying on the top.
The government must continue to harness digitalisation so that it can drive a step change in how people, businesses, and policymakers interact.
It needs to ensure complete interoperability across all levels of government and across all public services.?
Moving forward, it's important that when digitalising public services, it implements and follows a user-first and business-first approach.?
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