Digital Government Review of Biscay, Spain

1. Assessment and recommendations

Abstract

This chapter presents an overall assessment of Biscay’s digital government and a set of policy recommendations to support the next stage of its digital transformation. It consolidates the main findings of the review, highlighting strengths in institutional co‑ordination and delivery capacity, alongside opportunities to enhance resilience, participation and value‑driven prioritisation. The assessment and recommendations are structured around four areas: (1) governance, investments and skills; (2) data and artificial intelligence; (3) delivering digitally enabled public services that meet user needs; and (4) using GovTech to drive an innovative public administration.

Governance, investments and skills for resilient digital government

Contextual factors shaping digital government in Biscay

Biscay’s digital government agenda is shaped by a favourable context: a strong economic base and innovation ecosystem, high institutional capacity, and a stable political and fiscal framework that support long‑term planning and sustained investment. This context is reinforced by the accelerating digital transformation of Spain’s public sector at national level, which is raising expectations for more data‑driven and user‑centred services and providing sub‑national governments with more favourable conditions to scale broader digital transformation efforts within their competencies.

At the same time, Biscay faces a structural demographic shift as ageing accelerates, increasing demand for social and health-related services and raising pressures on productivity and fiscal sustainability. This context creates a dual imperative for digital government: to leverage stability and capability to deliver at scale, while embracing a prospective approach that continues placing Biscay at the forefront in government digital transformation. It also heightens the importance of inclusive strategies that combine digital empowerment, lifelong learning and innovative service models for elderly people and other vulnerable groups. In parallel, the ageing of the public workforce reinforces the need for continuous skills development and proactive talent attraction so that the administration can sustain delivery capacity and innovation. Taken together, these factors strengthen the case for governing digital transformation with resilience in mind, remaining permanently prepared for exogenous shocks that could disrupt otherwise stable operating conditions.

Institutional structure to drive digital transformation in government

Biscay benefits from a clear, centralised co-ordination model for digital government, built around a set of actors that provide strategic direction, operational steering and delivery capacity. This model is anchored in the General Secretariat of Co-ordination of the Provincial Council, complemented by the Department of Public Administration and Institutional Relations (including the Directorate for Good Governance, Citizen Services and Digital Services). Lantik, the provincial public company that serves as the inhouse technology provider, reinforces this architecture by ensuring continuity and technical capacity. Together, these actors provide coherence, reduce fragmentation, and helps sustain implementation across the administration.

This set‑up is reinforced by governance mechanisms for the Digital Agenda 2027, including a Digital Agenda Monitoring Committee for senior oversight and a Technical Secretariat supporting organisational and technical co‑operation (standards, alignment and operational follow‑up). These arrangements provide a basis for cross‑departmental ownership of priorities and for maintaining a consistent direction across the Provincial Government.

Engagement with citizens, civil society and the innovation ecosystem is active through multiple initiatives (e.g. digital inclusion efforts, participatory approaches, volunteer networks and feedback mechanisms). However, participation in the governance of the digital strategy remains largely ad hoc or channelled through open participation exercises, and there are no formal, stable non-governmental advisory/consultation structures dedicated to digital/ICT projects in government. Strengthening more formal spaces for civic and stakeholder engagement would help reinforce social buying, shared ownership and longterm legitimacy of the digital agenda.

Strategic direction of digital government in Biscay

Biscay’s digital transformation is guided by the Digital Agenda 2027, a strategic roadmap developed under the broader mandate plan 2023-2027 (“Biscay for All”) that aims to transform Biscay digitally by generating public value, improving quality of life and promoting territorial progress, while positioning the territory as a reference in digital society and a hub for technological talent. Formulated through a collaborative process aligned with its vision of “a citizen‑driven digital transformation”, the agenda is anchored in a clear implementation architecture (strategic objectives, strategic axes, lines of action and initiatives). Its priorities combine service transformation and inclusion with enabling foundations: improving the omnichannel experience for citizens and businesses; developing digital skills among citizens and public servants; building secure, advanced technological infrastructures; fostering innovation and public-private collaboration; and applying digitalisation to wellbeing, sustainability and social cohesion. This strategic design is complemented by Lantik’s Strategic Plan 2027, which underpins implementation through technological leadership, resilient infrastructures, secure solutions and highquality data to support decision-making and service delivery.

The strengths of this strategic setting (political and institutional stability, robust governance capacity and fiscal autonomy, strong interdepartmental relationships and a rich innovation ecosystem) can also create a risk of institutional inertia, especially if the system is not deliberately designed to stress‑test assumptions and adapt under uncertainty. This potential risk bears the need to remain permanently prepared for exogenous shocks, strengthening the case for embedding resilience and anticipatory capacity (foresight) more systematically into governance and investment prioritisation. Biscay could build on existing capacities already present in the Technical Secretariat (trend surveillance, benchmarking, monitoring indicators) and expanding them into structured anticipatory governance practices. This includes recurring scenario planning and horizon scanning, and using simulation tools to stress-test service continuity, infrastructure choices and policy options under alternative futures. Overall, institutionalising foresight as a routine governance discipline would help keep strategic options open, improve preparedness for demographic and security pressures, and sustain a forward‑looking digital transformation in a stable context.

Digital investments

Biscay has developed a relatively mature set of instruments to structure and manage digital investments. These include mandatory business case models (including Vision and Scope documentation), quality and process mechanisms such as Lantik’s Integrated Quality Management System (SIGC), and procurement and planning tools including Annual Contracting Plans (PAC), framework agreements, and systematic use of in‑house commissioning via Lantik. Together, these mechanisms support transparency, consistency, and continuity in delivery, particularly for critical ICT services and core platforms.

Yet, robust “front‑end” planning and delivery controls do not automatically ensure that investment decisions consistently translate into measurable outcomes and value over time. Strengthening the end‑to‑end investment cycle would help ensure that digital spending delivers value for money, reduces low‑yield legacy and supports prioritisation under changing conditions. This creates a clear rationale for complementing existing mechanisms with agile and adaptive investment models, as well as more systematic benefits monitoring and ROI‑informed prioritisation across the portfolio.

Digital skills and talent for a resilient and agile public service

Biscay has built a solid foundation for strengthening digital skills in the public service through structured initiatives that standardise and validate competencies (including inter-institutional work on digital profiles aligned with Europe’s DigComp, and the use of certifications as competency benchmarks). This is reinforced by internal learning platforms, transversal guidance for digital government tools, and a provincial training plan that includes technological skills adapted to different roles. Beyond training, Biscay is also promoting practical application of skills through pilots and innovation initiatives, including GovTech collaborations that expose teams to agile ways of working and user‑oriented iteration.

However, demographic pressures, particularly the ageing of the public workforce, heighten the importance of strengthening digital skills and talent. An ageing population increases pressure on services and requires inclusive approaches to ensure accessibility and sustained quality. In parallel, the ageing of the public workforce reinforces the need for continuous skills development to keep pace with technological change, to maintain the capacity to innovate and deliver effectively, and to continue attracting the right talent. There is a strong case for moving from individual initiatives to a more coherent and future‑oriented public sector digital skills and talent strategy. Such a strategy would be more effective if it differentiated skill needs across staff groups, supported continuous learning as part of workforce management, fostered enabling work environments, and used targeted measures of success to ensure training and capability‑building translate into improved delivery outcomes.

In line with existing initiatives and efforts, experimentation could gain a central component of digital skills. Biscay already has relevant building blocks: spaces for piloting prototypes and proofs of concept (e.g., Bizkaia Lab action line in the Digital Agenda), collaboration environments linked to emerging technologies, and an innovation ecosystem that includes public-private initiatives and clusters. The GovTech programme has been an important channel to translate this broader experimentation momentum into public sector delivery by enabling teams to frame problems, run pilots and iterate with external partners. Yet organisational and cultural barriers can still constrain uptake, including preferences for familiar options and suppliers and the perceived transaction costs of piloting and iteration. Biscay can thus deepen existing initiatives and efforts to build stronger experimentation skills (problem framing, user research, prototyping, evaluation and iteration) and the organisational conditions that make experimentation routine rather than exceptional.

Proposals for action

1. Strengthen the resilience of Biscay’s digital governance against exogenous shocks.

a. Embed resilience as an explicit governance objective of the Digital Agenda, treating continuity under disruption as a design constraint for priority services and enabling infrastructure.

b. Use existing co‑ordination structures to introduce regular “stress‑testing” of strategic priorities and delivery assumptions, reducing the risk of institutional inertia in a stable context.

2. Formalise civic participation and collaboration in the governance of digital government.

a. Move from mostly project‑by‑project engagement to a more structured framework for participation and collaboration, including formalised and continued spaces (e.g. advisory or consultation body) that strengthen social buy‑in and shared ownership of the Digital Agenda.

3. Embed foresight in decision‑making and investment prioritisation.

a. Build on existing capabilities to institutionalise a foresight function that regularly scans technological, demographic, economic, political and security drivers, and feeds directly into prioritisation decisions.

b. Use foresight outputs to create constructive friction in prioritisation, explicitly identifying lock‑in risks and where stability may hide long‑term vulnerabilities.

4. Implement systematic benefits monitoring and ROI‑based prioritisation at portfolio level

a. Strengthen benefits realisation by tracking outcomes post‑deployment and using evidence to prioritise scaling of high‑value initiatives and reduce low‑yield legacy over time.

b. Ensure benefits monitoring informs future business cases, procurement and strategic approaches so learning accumulates at portfolio level.

5. Formulate a comprehensive digital skills and talent strategy for the public service

a. Build on existing competency mapping and training assets to define tailored development pathways for different groups (leadership, policy/operations, technical/delivery roles, digital roles) and to support continuous learning and workforce renewal.

b. Make experimentation an explicit strand of the strategy by defining the skills expected for modern delivery (problem framing, user research, prototyping, evaluation and iteration) and aligning learning itineraries and recognition mechanisms accordingly.

c. Extend practices and lessons from GovTech beyond the programme itself by embedding them into departmental routines and aligning them systematically with the emerging digital skills and talent strategy.

Unleashing data for trustworthy AI

Strategic vision and leadership for data

Biscay’s Provincial Council treats data as a strategic asset to improve evidence‑based policy and user‑centred services, with value depending on coherent governance, interoperability and safeguards that ensure trust. Biscay has strengthened the foundations for data governance through the Data Statute (2024) and the Data Governance Model, supported by an implementation roadmap. A multi‑level structure is in place, led by a Chief Data Officer (CDO) supported by a Data Governance Manager and a Data Office, with an interdepartmental committee bringing together departmental data leads to steer implementation.

Capacities for implementation and regulation

The operational delivery of data governance relies on networks and roles embedded across the Provincial Council. An interdepartmental technical committee supports work on data quality and use, the Data Office co‑ordinates data activities, and departmental roles (data leads and stewards) are expected to implement governance procedures and support quality and reuse. Because responsibilities may overlap between the Data Office, departments and Lantik, roles could be clearly assigned and supported by practical feedback loops from civil servants, ensuring workable and accountable governance.

Data skills and capability are a priority area for the Provincial Council. The Data Academy promotes a culture of data use across departments, but its effectiveness depends on how closely training is aligned with concrete objectives and use cases, and on whether impact is assessed and iterated. Training also extends to practical domains (e.g. GIS tutorials) and to regulatory topics relevant to data and AI. The remaining challenge is ensuring practical competencies translate into delivery outcomes.

Current funding arrangements rely on a decentralised model in which departments contract Lantik for data‑related services. While the Data Office introduces a central co‑ordination mechanism, its resources depend on broader organisational arrangements.

Rules and standards for data sharing and use

Biscay operates within a multi‑layered regulatory environment combining EU, national, regional and provincial provisions. Data protection is governed by GDPR and Spanish law, interoperability is framed by Spain’s National Interoperability Scheme and Basque legislation; and open data is governed by a provincial decree aligned with EU principles on re‑use of public sector information and national “open by default” expectations. This creates strong safeguards, while increasing the need for implementable guidance and consistent capacity across the administration.

Data infrastructure and architecture (including open data and interoperability)

Biscay benefits from long experience in managing data. However, data sharing arrangements can remain fragmented, limiting agility and reuse at scale. Open Data Bizkaia and GeoBizkaia support data reuse by bringing together datasets from both provincial institutions and local municipalities, offering tools such as a map viewer along with APIs and mapping services. Although the portals are well-developed, ongoing engagement from data producers after the initial release of their datasets can vary. Reuse is not measured systematically beyond portal analytics, and engagement is largely event‑based (datathons and data‑driven journalism challenges), which limits structured feedback loops that would improve prioritisation and data quality.

Interoperability is enabled through a provincial node aligned with the national scheme and connected with Basque (NISAE) and Spanish (PID) nodes. While reliable, evolving towards more flexible approaches could simplify processes and accelerate exchanges, together with co-ordination with regional and national infrastructures.

Biscay aims to establish a unified Provincial Data Catalogue to break down silos, enhance data quality, and boost interoperability. Yet, without clear scope and purpose, it risks becoming just a costly inventory rather than driving reuse. A value-focused strategy could help address this by focusing on metadata management over data consolidation, connecting existing repositories, targeting high-impact use cases, and using a phased rollout to demonstrate value and gain support.

Use of AI in government

Biscay is gradually adopting AI to improve public services and internal processes. Machine‑learning and generative‑AI initiatives are driven mainly by practical departmental use cases rather than a central mandate. Examples include a predictive model in social services to estimate the risk of institutionalisation for dependent persons, transport applications that predict bus occupancy and optimise fleet allocation, and pilots such as waste‑collection route optimisation and AI‑assisted classification of citizen queries in call centres. This approach supports experimentation and incremental validation, but increases the need for co‑ordination and safeguards to maintain trust, accountability and alignment with longer‑term objectives.

Enablers for trustworthy AI

AI initiatives are supported by Lantik’s technical capacity, although a dedicated AI‑governance function has not yet been established to the same extent as data governance. Preparations for compliance with the EU AI Act are progressing, and a dedicated AI strategy is under development. However, systematic risk‑assessment processes are envisaged yet not in place at the time of writing this report. Ethical considerations (e.g. explainability and bias) are addressed at the project level, often in collaboration with academic partners. Infrastructure is viewed as critical for scaling, supported by a centralised technology model that provides secure platforms for both provincial and municipal actors.

AI‑skills constraints remain significant as departments rely heavily on Lantik for technical expertise, while many civil servants lack confidence in using AI tools. Training initiatives are being developed, but cultural resistance and unsafe overconfidence in external tools can coexist, underscoring the need for targeted capacity‑building, mentoring and partnerships to support safe and effective adoption.

Guardrails and engagement for trustworthy AI

Biscay is already taking concrete steps to strengthen trustworthy AI, including work with the Basque Data Protection Authority to validate risk‑management methodologies and a general orientation towards pilots that support public services without fully automating decisions. This provides a constructive starting point for scaling AI responsibly, building institutional confidence and preparing for evolving regulatory expectations. At the same time, transparency mechanisms are not yet fully developed: there is currently no public inventory of AI systems, no systematic disclosure of algorithmic use, and no dedicated transparency instrument such as an algorithm registry. Formal mechanisms, such as algorithmic impact assessments or audits, are also not yet in place, and accountability for AI‑related outcomes would benefit from clearer definition as applications expand and new use cases emerge. Consultation with citizens and workers remains limited, with feedback largely concentrated in piloting phases involving civil servants. More participatory approaches are likely to become increasingly relevant as adoption progresses.

Proposals for action

6. Consolidate data governance and implementation by clarifying mandates and reducing overlaps

a. Use implementation monitoring and feedback from civil servants to identify where role proliferation increases burden, and adjust governance accordingly.

7. Ensure the forthcoming Provincial Data Catalogue becomes a value-creating asset

a. Develop the catalogue with a focus on practical use cases for sharing, re-use, and interoperability across the province.

b. Adopt a phased approach in the development of the catalogue to demonstrate value and align with the Digital Agenda.

8. Strengthen interoperability by evolving towards more flexible integration approaches

a. Progressively move towards an API‑first approach where feasible, co-ordinating with regional and national infrastructures.

b. Reduce fragmentation in data sharing agreements, strengthen shared mechanisms and reusable integration components.

9. Systematise external stakeholder involvement in open data re‑use to maximise public value

a. Complement events (datathons, challenges) with structured feedback loops (regular user forums, dataset prioritisation input, reuse showcases) to improve data quality and relevance.

b. Ensure data producers within the Provincial departments are directly involved in stakeholder engagement, and link re-use priorities to service and policy outcomes.

10. Move from AI pilots to trustworthy, scalable adoption through common governance and transparency

a. Define a common approach for testing and scaling AI pilots, prioritising low‑risk, high‑impact cases (e.g. transport occupancy forecasting).

b. Introduce a first AI governance model specifying roles, risk screening and reporting requirements for all pilots.

c. Maintain a public inventory of AI systems used in the public sector to foster trust and enable clear communication on where and how AI is used.

d. Formalise accountability for AI‑supported decisions by distinguishing administrative responsibility from political accountability.

Delivering digitally enabled public services that meet user needs

Human-centred approaches to understand and meet user needs

Biscay has anchored service transformation in its digital strategy, with a clear focus on simplifying procedures, improving accessibility and moving towards proactive, human‑centred services supported by data. This direction is reflected in Axis 3 of the Digital Agenda 2027 and in the practical redesign of how users access and experience services.

Biscay is implementing a broad omni‑channel model that combines a single digital gateway, digital interaction tools (video calls and chatbots) and an expanded in‑person network (Gertu) intended to provide more coherent access to services. The model is supported by complementary service capacity through Zugaztel, including phone‑enabled services, document digitalisation and digital content production. Together, these elements provide a strong platform for inclusive access and user choice.

Moving from multi‑channel availability to active and integrated channel management could enable a higher maturity level in how Biscay meets user needs. While online and offline channels co-exist and are articulated under the broader Provincial Council’s strategy Biscay would benefit from a dedicated channel strategy that defines the intended role of each channel and the “optimal” interaction pathways for users (e.g., when to transact online, by phone, or in person). Without this, investment decisions risk being driven by historical channel patterns rather than evidence of what works best for different user groups and service types.

Biscay is also evolving the way services are presented and navigated. It is progressively restructuring its corporate website around a life‑events approach, and it is expanding front‑office capacity through a new service centre planned in Bilbao in 2026, with additional service desks and spaces for sensitive consultations. These initiatives reinforce the ambition to organise service delivery around citizens’ needs and contexts.

Joined‑up service delivery is strengthened through the once‑only principle. Biscay has formal requirements that prevent departments and agencies from requesting personal data from citizens and businesses more than once, and it implements these through interoperability nodes at provincial level (Nodo Bizkaia de interoperabilidad) and at state/regional level (NISAE). This supports more seamless services and reduces administrative burden. However, the interoperability approach relies largely on SOAP‑based services, which can limit flexibility for increasingly dynamic service delivery, multi‑channel experiences and third‑party integrations; a gradual evolution towards more API‑oriented interoperability would better support rapid iteration and channel integration.

Biscay has also institutionalised common approaches and guidelines for service delivery through service charters, which set quality commitments, indicators and participation channels (suggestions and complaints). Yet service design practice remains uneven across institutions: survey evidence in the chapter shows that only a few entities involve users comprehensively across the service lifecycle, and many rely on enabling support rather than embedding user research and iteration as standard practice. Consequently, there is a compelling argument in favour of adopting a more standardised framework, such as a unified service standard.

Importantly, Biscay has implemented numerous practices to include a human-centred approach when designing and delivering services. CiX co‑creation projects are used as structured methods for involving citizens and stakeholders in shaping services, with examples spanning digital inclusion initiatives, EtxeTIC for technology‑enabled home care, and Batuz for tax services (supporting more than 90 000 companies and self‑employed workers). These cases demonstrate that user involvement and iterative delivery are feasible in practice and can be scaled more consistently across the portfolio of services.

Capabilities and enablers to deliver public services at scale and with pace

Biscay’s capacity to deliver services at scale is supported by long‑standing shared delivery arrangements and infrastructure. Lantik is a key enabler for provincial service transformation, with Zugaztel supporting service channels and operational capacity. At local level, BiscayTIK provides municipalities with cloud‑based services (SaaS) and digital platforms that enable online citizen procedures and shared ICT infrastructure, reducing disparities in local digital maturity and enabling more consistent experiences across the territory. Udalnet complements this by providing a digital channel for communication and administrative interaction with municipalities and inter‑municipal bodies.

Biscay’s shared digital building blocks include a single digital gateway, multiple digital identity options through the Basque Country service provider Izenpe (including Bak and BakQ), interoperability capabilities, digital payment and digital communications/notifications. This shared foundation supports scale, consistency and reuse, and creates preconditions for more joined‑up services.

However, scaling services with pace requires complementing technology developments with enhanced capabilities to understand and meet user needs. Biscay is strengthening digital skills through a dedicated line in its strategy (including capabilities such as leadership, data governance, collaboration and security awareness) and through participation in the Ikanos Project aligned with DigComp. Yet service transformation requires stronger and more explicit capability in service design and user research, including journey mapping, research methods, and the ability to use performance and satisfaction data to drive iteration. GovTech could act as a practical accelerator for these capabilities. Participation in GovTech challenges exposes staff to agile and experimental ways of working, alongside external innovators, and supports “learning by doing” that can embed new delivery habits. This is relevant not only for innovation, but for building repeatable delivery capability across the administration.

Finally, Biscay’s enabling environment has a multi‑level and cross‑border horizon. It is essential for Biscay to consolidate shared infrastructure to sustain interoperability within Spain and to enable citizens to use trusted digital identity and related capabilities when accessing services abroad, in line with EU developments such as the digital wallet and eIDAS 2.0. This reinforces the need for sustained co‑ordination and maintenance of enabling infrastructure to ensure continuity and usability across jurisdictions.

Oversight mechanisms for trusted public services

Biscay has established multiple mechanisms to monitor service performance and user experience, and it uses operational data to inform delivery. The Provincial Council does real‑time monitoring through control boards that track channel performance, visits, and completed/uncompleted transactions, alongside monitoring by Zugaztel. Lantik supports infrastructure reliability through tools such as Dynatrace. For high‑salience services, Biscay has dedicated performance measurement, such as a specific monitoring approach for the tax declaration campaign that tracks cross‑channel performance and completion rates, enabling teams to identify issues and target improvements.

User satisfaction measurement is also well developed. Service charters define explicit commitments and satisfaction targets alongside operational indicators (e.g., waiting times, response times, processing deadlines and accessibility commitments), and performance against these commitments is monitored and published. Biscay complements this with external measurement for in‑person channels and service‑specific satisfaction surveys (including treasury, social security and environmental services). The Provincial Treasury uses satisfaction surveys to compare channel efficiency and user preferences and to adjust staffing and service features; high satisfaction with digital channels and growing online usage have encouraged expansion of online offerings and investment in automation (including automatic tax refunds).

A key opportunity is to enhance how performance measurement connects to service improvement. Often, performance and satisfaction metrics are not fully integrated, making it harder to use evidence when redesigning services or channels. To address this, it's helpful to present performance and satisfaction data in a way that directly supports decisions about service design and delivery; use one standard method for measuring satisfaction, so results can be compared across providers and services; and develop service improvement plans that are directly linked to satisfaction goals outlined in service charters.

Proposals for action

As the Provincial Council looks to further strengthen digitally enabled public services, the following recommendations are suggested:

11. Strengthen human-centred public services that understand and meet user needs

a. Continue prioritising a strategic approach to human-centred service design and delivery at provincial and local levels.

b. Establish a Council-wide view and practice to public service transformation in the Provincial Council, including a more comprehensive engagement of users across the service lifecycle.

12. Consolidate omni‑channel delivery through active channel management

a. Develop a dedicated channel strategy that defines the optimal way citizens should interact with government and how channels should support it.

b. Use the channel strategy to guide investment choices and ensure consistent user experience across channels as services scale.

13. Raise service quality and consistency through a shared service standard

a. Establish a comprehensive service standard that equips Lantik and public service providers with the principles, tools and practices that ensure high-quality and consistent services.

14. Strengthen capabilities to deliver services with pace and at scale

a. Implement dedicated training and functions for service design and user research within Lantik and across the Council’s workforce.

b. Promote multi-disciplinary teams that combine different expertise, policy sectors and government levels in Biscay approaching public service transformation.

15. Leverage partnerships and enabling ecosystems for better services

a. Continue leveraging the GovTech Programme to strengthen collaboration across different stakeholders involved in service design and delivery.

16. Strengthen digital infrastructure and ensure uptake across all societal groups

a. Continue strengthening digital infrastructure for service design and delivery in Biscay, including targeted actions to increase uptake among all societal groups in the province.

b. Continue empowering BiscayTIK with support and tools to transform local public services in equal and consistent ways with the Provincial Council.

17. Reinforce oversight mechanisms for trusted public services

a. Clearly articulate service performance and user satisfaction data to inform public service design and delivery.

b. Unify user satisfaction measurement across service providers for better result comparability across different public services.

c. Establish service improvement roadmaps and action plans tied to user satisfaction targets set in each service charter.

Using GovTech to drive an innovative public administration in Biscay

Biscay’s GovTech Lab

Biscay’s GovTech Lab operates as a structured collaboration hub between the Provincial Council, startups and SMEs to cocreate digital solutions to public-sector challenges, with a global scope (not limited to firms in the territory). Delivery follows a consistent five-phase methodology: identifying challenges using design and innovation methods; disseminating challenges to the ecosystem; selecting startups through structured interaction with public teams; piloting and experimenting with users of the service or process; and extracting learnings to inform future tenders and scaling decisions. Challenge publication and management are centralised through a dedicated space on BEAZ’s BIOK! platform, supporting transparency and accessibility for both innovators and public bodies. Since 2022, the Lab has run 14 GovTech challenges spanning themes such as citizen engagement, process simplification, public management and better use of public resources, and it treats learning as a core output through project retrospectives (“Learning Sessions”) whose lessons are published online.

Mature digital government infrastructure

GovTech delivery rests on the maturity of data and digital foundations, particularly data quality, secure access and sharing, and flexible infrastructure. Biscay combines legal mandates and technical standards to support data readiness, including open data publication under permissive licences with safeguards, and the provision of almost 80 datasets across policy areas in open, non-proprietary formats through Open Data Bizkaia. Data access for GovTech is enabled both through project based‑based requests and through Open Data Bizkaia. Through Lantik, provincial actors can access common digital infrastructure, even when it is not directly exposed to the GovTech ecosystem. A shared cloud or data centre could enhance collaboration with private partners, given proper safeguards. Biscay also operates the Bizkaia Connected Corridor as a real-world platform to test, validate‑world platform to test, validate and demonstrate co-operative, connected and autonomous mobility technologies and smart/digital infrastructures in realistic conditions.

Capacities for collaboration and experimentation

GovTech requires public servants to work iteratively, collaborate across organisational boundaries and engage external innovators without falling back into rigid, specification-heavy delivery habits. Biscay is strengthening these capacities through a blend of formal training (e.g., webinars) and practical “learn‑by‑doing” exposure within the Lab. Civil servants receive support to understand how start‑up collaboration works and how to frame challenges, including training on pitching to improve problem definition; startups are trained to understand public sector expectations and constraints. Delivery is organised through agile practices (sprints and weekly touchpoints) and user centred framing, with checkpoints and indicators used to assess feasibility and impact on work practices, trust and sustainability.

Cultural barriers to GovTech collaboration include reluctance to try new approaches, concerns about time investment, and a preference for established suppliers. To address these challenges, the GovTech Lab works with civil servants promoting iterative delivery, clarifying roles and responsibilities, establishing progress indicators, and offering ongoing training and mentoring. In parallel, it reframes procurement conversations around user needs and outcomes rather than pre‑selected market solutions, helping shift expectations about how services can be improved through experimentation. When pilots do not go to plan, the approach emphasises extracting and publishing lessons so that participation still generates value and confidence, rather than being treated as a failure.

Resources and implementation support

GovTech produces value when pilots can be funded, delivered, and then transitioned into sustainable adoption. Biscay has secured sustainable funding through a mix of sources: the Mandate Plan guarantees financing across the four-year legislative term, the programme has remained on the political agenda across the last two legislatures, and resources are provided through dedicated allocations, departmental Provincial IT Plans, European Regional Development Fund support, and Seed Capital Bizkaia funding instruments. Procurement is being adapted to reduce barriers for smaller firms while staying within Spanish and EU rules: Lantik uses framework agreements and pilots up to EUR 15 000 without a formal tender, and legal pathways are being explored to raise thresholds. Contractual approaches are also being tested to encourage partnerships between established suppliers and start‑ups, including subcontracting models and innovation clauses. Scaling is supported through dissemination practices (publishing pilots and lessons online, information days and scouting sessions). However, digital investment decisions do not yet systematically require teams to check whether an existing GovTech solution can be reused or adapted before commissioning a new one. This gap increases the likelihood of duplicated effort and reduces opportunities to scale proven solutions cost‑effectively.

Availability and maturity of GovTech partners

A healthy GovTech ecosystem depends on partners that can design, deliver and scale solutions, and on public actions that reduce structural barriers for startups. Biscay strengthens partner readiness through tailored acceleration and training, with BEAZ playing a central role in helping entrepreneurs navigate public administration language, processes and requirements (including how to pitch, interpret procurement requirements, and avoid procedural disqualifications). Start‑ups are supported through mentoring that bridges bureaucratic steps, while civil servants are also trained to better understand startup culture and product maturity. Access to finance is supported through Seed Capital Bizkaia’s investment approach, including the provision of “patient capital” suitable for longer public sector sales cycles. Market participation is being widened through entrepreneurial procurement models, including a working group piloting “Project Competitions” (under the Public Sector Contracts Law) that enable innovative solutions to be trialled and potentially scaled, alongside exploration of framework agreements, dynamic purchasing systems and subscription‑based models to lower administrative burden and increase access for new suppliers.

Enabling more effective uses of GovTech inside and beyond Biscay

GovTech becomes durable when it is embedded in strategy, institutionalised in delivery teams, and connected to networks that diffuse learning and scale solutions. GovTech is integrated into both the Mandate Plan and the Digital Agenda, with political leadership anchored through the Deputy for Public Administration and Institutional Relations acting as a clear GovTech champion who secures legitimacy, staff and funding. An institutional delivery model supports end-to‑to‑end execution through a dedicated GovTech function spanning Digital Strategy (traction and co‑ordination), Lantik (consulting and technical support with core and challenge-specific staff), BEAZ (support to companies), and a Technical Office (administrative/technical support). Biscay is also leveraging international engagement through the Ibero-American GovTech Network and GovTech4All, and hosted the European Summit of the GovTech4All Consortium in Bilbao to align practices and strengthen collaboration.

Proposals for action

As the Provincial Council looks to further expand its use of GovTech to innovate public service delivery and drive economic growth in its start-up ecosystem, the following recommendations are suggested:

18. Strengthen data access and use as a foundation for GovTech collaborations

a. Implement the new data catalogue with staff training and active promotion to improve discoverability and reuse for problem diagnosis and solution design.

b. Explore AI-driven analysis to identify challenges and opportunities that can form the basis of future GovTech collaborations, ensuring governance and safeguards support trustworthy use.

19. Leverage shared and common infrastructure for GovTech collaborations

a. Consider shared cloud or data centre environments that facilitate access, sharing and interoperability with private sector partners, with appropriate security protocols.

20. Integrate GovTech into budget planning and investment processes

a. Embed checkpoints in digital investment processes to prioritise reuse and scaling of existing GovTech solutions, supporting efficiency and better use of public resources.

b. Embed GovTech considerations within budget planning and procurement procedures to prioritise the reuse and expansion of existing GovTech solutions, enabling their adaptation for additional use cases.

21. Expand innovative procurement models that lower barriers for start‑ups and support scaling

a. Continue developing subcontracting, framework agreements, dynamic purchasing systems, and subscription-based models to widen market access and foster sustainable start‑up participation.

b. Use the lessons generated by pilots to inform tender design and evaluation criteria, ensuring that procurement translates validated learning into fit-for-purpose purchasing decisions.

22. Leverage networks to support diffusion and scaling beyond Biscay

a. Build on existing international engagement to share lessons, align with global practice, and actively pursue scaling of local solutions to other contexts and markets.