Innovation x 2!

• This is the first joint OECD Public Governance Review between two countries.
  
  
• A highly innovative approach demonstrating Estonia’s and Finland’s commitment to public governance reform.
  
  
• But also, it demonstrates both countries’ commitment to exploring governance solutions together, building on shared challenges.

Facing challenges together

• The report discusses challenges in whole-of-government strategy steering and the opportunities of digital government.
  
  
• The review issues country-specific recommendations and develops a joint roadmap to support Estonia’s and Finland’s ambitions to develop well-designed cross-border services for citizens and businesses.

• Finland and Estonia are increasingly integrated from an economic standpoint. People, businesses and ideas are moving across the border on a daily basis. Policy seminars engaged specialists and agencies across both sides of the border to share governance experience and implement cross-border sharing of information.
  
  
• Estonia and Finland share an ambition to make digital government a strategic tool for government reform and modernisation.

 
5 phases of reform

• As both countries pursue better coordination for a whole-of-government approach to reform, 5 principles were identified:
  
  1) streamlining strategy;
  2) silo busting for better policy integration;
  3) setting clear reform paths;
  4) adopting “Just do it” pragmatism and
  5) knowledge sharing that breaks down borders.

 
A true innovation lab

• The Estonian-Finnish cooperation has the potential to become a true innovation lab, stimulating broader cross-national cooperation at the European level.
  
  
• It offers a stepping stone for other countries to join in within the Baltic region and beyond.
  
  
• This is an example of how open discussions are helping to redefine the “Fin-Est” in governance and digital practices.
  
  
• This illustrates how the OECD commitment to creating and sharing evidence for decision making can drive real change.

Contact

Stéphane Jacobzone
Counsellor
Reform of the Public Sector 
Directorate for Public Governance and Territorial Development

Whole-of-government strategy - Finland

Digital strategy - Finland

Whole-of-government strategy - Estonia

Digital strategy - Estonia