DIEGO (Highly scalable Deployment model “of Inclusive E-Gov): Funded by the CIP-ICT-PSP-3 program.

DIEGO main target has been to provide, a friendly and easy way of transforming preexisting e-Government services, removing their ICT barriers (e-Exclusion), or creating new ones “from scratch” widely inclusive from the beginning, based on “open source best practice” across all Europe.

Its primary contribution has been to maintain and improve disadvantaged European citizens through a set of Service Offers that put them as central stakeholders with Needs, Preferences and Rights, using the preferred ICT channel (among widely available choices) and for accessing and using e-Gov services (with a minimum learning curve), without minding about what technology is behind, because it is absolutely hidden to them.

DIEGO main activities have been realized in the area that can be best termed as “Inclusive ICT enabled Public Services” a complex and dynamic area where social and inclusive eGovernance meet.

DIEGO main outcomes offer an answer to the question of how governments can facilitate their services towards citizens by making them friendlier and inclusive. And it does so by using a multi-channel approach and flexible availability of services configured around users’ needs and preferences.

DIEGO contributes and follow accessibility guidelines not simply by being compliant

to de facto standards as W3C, but applying a combination of strands such as: availability (whichever is the ICT channel to be used); affordability (within everybody reach); accessibility (easy to use and full inclusive), complemented by no less important factors as content, skills and motivation.

Throughout its lifecycle DIEGO managed to support a partnership approach where various different stakeholders have participated and where all actors have been trained and supported, and were actually responsible for achieving the outcomes, rather than on delivering particular services. In DIEGO, the links in the delivery network have been crucially enabled by ICT, in a mix of systems, technologies and media, including human based interactions.

The main outputs of the DIEGO Project throughout its life cycle have been the following:

1. A new “user-centric” and accessible service provision model for speeding up Inclusive e-Gov including trans-border services, according to preferred ICT media available (interactive TV, smart mobile devices, [desktop] kiosks or PCs) to their respective citizens.

2. A “highly scalable Deployment Model”, based on a Software as a Service (SaaS) approach and widely accepted web services standards (guarantee of interoperability with any back-office) and the affordability of the implementation, beyond the project (in the self-sustainability phase).