e-Service - a service which you may require or receive in a remote way via information and communication technologies.
In order to provide wide accessibility of services, institutions more often offer services electronically beside services that are already offered in presence. Consequently, institutions increase accessibility to their services, improve a quality of services for the population, as well as provide an efficient use of resources for ensuring their functions. By using Internet persons can receive services more quickly and conveniently from any location and without any time limits - 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Services for the electronization are being selected by taking into account a level of population’s demand for the service, conducting face to face and other aspects. Meanwhile, EU has identified 20 basic public services which must be provided electronically for citizens and for businesses.
Access to e-Services
To ensure citizens and employers to access an information of all state and municipal services through a single entry point, there is a Directory of Public services created. It is available in a Latvian State portal www.latvija.lv(more information about this website). The Directory of services is the Point of Single Contact of services offered by Latvian public administration for citizens and for businesses. However e-Services are available also in homepages of different authorities and municipalities which are responsible for those services.
Types of e-Services:
There are three types of electronic services:
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Informational e-Services - persons can receive an online information provided by institutions. For example, an e-Service "Persons which are declared in my property";
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Transaction e-Services – these e-Services replace administrative procedures that are performed in the presence. These are e-Services which initiate and / or implement actions by institutions in some decision making about a person or a group of persons (for example, handing out a driving license etc.). A client receives information about the fact that the service is ready and about a way how to receive it, for example, to receive the service electronically, in the presence or by an e-mail;
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Participation e-Services - persons have a possibility to be involved directly in the working process of state or local governments (for example, surveys on population, e-elections, an opportunity to become acquainted with the preparation of draft laws, to express own views etc.).
Benefits of e-Services:
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e-Services are available all the time apart from working hours and location of the institution;
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adjustment of services accordingly to interests and desires of clients, as well as promotion of interactive dialogue;
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exchange of information between “institution – institution” and “institution – person” is more prompt and qualitative;
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reduction of administrative costs due to the adjustment and automation of internal processes, as well as reduction of administrative burdens;
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successful communication with the society, higher awareness about the decision making process in the institution.