In the project DESIRA, Fraunhofer IESE is investigating how digitalization in municipal governments can contribute to improving living conditions in rural areas.
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The EU-funded project DESIRA addresses the economic and social impact of digitalization in rural areas. The project consortium consists of 25 research institutes, non-government organizations, and small and medium-sized enterprises from all over Europe. DESIRA aims to improve the capabilities of society and policymakers in dealing with the challenges of digitalization in agriculture, forestry, and rural areas in general.
The latter represents the research focus of Fraunhofer IESE in the Living Lab of the Betzdorf- Gebhardshain association of municipalities in Rhineland-Palatinate. The central question is how municipal governments can deal with the internal and external challenges of digitalization, and what the most important impacts are for the local stakeholders involved in this process. Municipal governments admittedly play a central role when it comes to overcoming challenges in rural areas and seizing the potential opportunities offered by digitalization. At the same time, however, Germany is lagging behind other EU countries in terms of digitalization of public administration and public services. Among other things, the Online Access Act (OZG) is intended to remedy this situation. Almost 600 different administrative services at all levels (from the municipal level to the federal level) must be offered digitally by the end of 2022. In addition to such external challenges, municipal governments must also face internal challenges, such as mobilizing resources (budget, competencies) or developing effective solutions (adaptability, interoperability).
In the project DESIRA, Fraunhofer IESE is analyzing the most important needs and impacts of digitalization at the interface between public administration and the general public. These are identified using various methods such as survey, workshops, and scenario techniques, but also with creative approaches such as digital storytelling. IESE is thus concerned with how digitalization in public administration can contribute to improving living conditions in rural areas.
Fraunhofer Institute for Experimental Software Engineering IESE