eGovernment MONITOR 2024
Since 2010, the eGovernment MONITOR has been comparing the use and provision of eGovernment services in three countries: Germany (DE), Austria (AT) and Switzerland. The latest comparative study was conducted in May 2024. For this purpose, a total of around 10,000 people, including around 1,000 people in Switzerland, were asked about their experiences of using eGovernment services. The study was published on 8 October 2024 by Initiative D21 and the Technical University of Munich.
Demands in terms of the digitalisation
Compared to previous years, the demands in terms of the digitalisation of public services have increased in all three countries. In Switzerland, around 72% (previous year: 62%) expect 21st century public services to be as easy and convenient to access online as those provided by private companies. 70% of respondents in Switzerland would like to see new technologies used to make public services more efficient.
Use of online public services
In terms of use, it is clear that 81% in Switzerland have used public services online when they were available online (DE: 69%, AT: 79%). At 79%, satisfaction with public services is also comparatively highest in Switzerland (DE: 62%, AT: 74%). According to the respondents, the barriers to using digital public services are the lack of end-to-end digital services (47%), the lack of a contact person (45%), the fear of doing something wrong (44%) and the habit of dealing with authorities in person (42%). The driving factors behind their use are the provision of a central digital platform (41%), the faster access to digital services (39%) and the potential for personalisation (37%).
A total of 66% (DE: 56%, AT: 75%) of respondents in Switzerland use eGovernment services (previous year: 60%). Among younger people aged 16 to 34, the figure is as high as 72%, among people aged 35 to 54 it is 65% and among people aged 55 and over it is 62%. In Switzerland, the use of mobile digital public services stands at only 48% (DE: 59%, AT: 61%). It is clear that these are used primarily by younger people aged 16 to 34 (61%).
Services and artificial intelligence
Services that were used entirely online in Switzerland included, in particular, registering with a regional employment centre (86%), applying for certificates from the register of criminal convictions (85%), applying for care vouchers (85%) and ordering extracts from the debt enforcement register (85%). Other frequently used services are applying for educational grants (82%), filing an income tax return (80%), ordering official documents (75%) and submitting building permit applications (72%). Fewer people used the services for deregistering and registering their place of residence (70%), applying for a confirmation of residence (70%) or registering for a retirement pension (65%).
In terms of artificial intelligence (AI), 31% of respondents were able to explain the term, while 53% had at least a rough idea of what it means. The majority of people believe that AI is capable of translating texts (80%) and generating responses in text form (75%). Only 21% of respondents believe that it is capable of emotional and ethical tasks. It is interesting to note that around 19% of respondents already use AI at least once a week, and 18% at least once a month. Around 55% of respondents would welcome the general use of AI in public services, provided that important decisions continue to be made by humans.
Conclusion
The eGovernment MONITOR 2024 makes it clear that the public's demands regarding digital public services – and the use of these services – are continuing to grow. By reducing the barriers to using digital public services and developing the driving factors, use in Switzerland can be further increased. In addition to the simple provision of services, a focus for the future should be on the provision of mobile services from a central location.