In 2016, the working group would like to address the following topics:

1. Topics related to open government initiatives at various levels of administration, which include collection, formalisation and provision of open data by public authorities, as well as the use of open data and co-sourcing/co-creation of services and solutions by private companies and NGOs or citizens. Specific examples or broader analyses are expected here.

2. The topic of cyberspace security, e.g. security issues on using public data; steps and measures for securing different online procedures, and the balance between addressing specific needs of target groups without violating privacy principles and requirements.

3. Topics related to data mining in the field of e-government (e.g. text analysis of e-government policies, mining open/big data).

4. Interoperability issues – organisational, technological and semantic dimensions of interoperability challenges and/or solutions.

5. Topics related to methodologies for selection of e-government projects/programmes. In particular, methodologies that are already in use in practice, but have not yet been presented publicly are very welcome, as well as presentations of decision-making processes related to e-government expenditure.

However, the working group is also open to presentations of other aspects of e-governance research or research within the neighbouring fields of m-government (e.g., m-services or apps for engaging citizens) and similar. The contributed articles may take the form of a case study, a report of cross-country or cross-sectorial survey or comparative analysis of showcases or policies, or a policy proposal or analysis.

For those who are planning to perform an evaluation of the more traditional aspects of implementation, performance and impact of e-government and e-governance (e.g., provision of e-services/e-participation via the Web pages of local governments) we have a proposal. Before beginning to develop your own evaluation methodology, we encourage you to take a look at the references provided here about any existing or used papers/methodologies and the catalogue of indicators:

This may not only give you new ideas and improve the quality of your research/paper, but also give you and us a good basis and perquisites for more substantial and credible comparative studies between NISPAcee countries.

We would also kindly encourage you to amend your abstracts and full papers with a short separate sub-section of practical points for practitioners which are related to the content presented in your paper, wherever possible. These sections should clearly highlight the practical value of the present research and its results, listing a couple of concrete recommendations for practitioners, typically politicians, as well as public administration employees and leaders.