On the 27th and 28th of May 2024, Interoperable Europe organised a Roadshow in Warsaw involving the SEMIC and the Nation Interoperability Framework Observatory (NIFO) teams co-. Poland was proposed to host the Roadshow as the country is one of the most active Member States in the deployment of NIFO initiatives. Additionally, with its mature level of implementation of the European Interoperability Framework (EIF), the Polish administration made this Roadshow a perfect opportunity to share knowledge, experiences and foster further collaboration within the field of interoperability.
In this article, we describe some of the discussions that took place during these two days.
On the first day, the NIFO team outlined their efforts to support EU Member States and other European countries to enhance cross-border interoperability of public services, introducing the EIF monitoring mechanism and other NIFO initiatives such as the Berlin Declaration monitoring (BDM).
After the presentation of the NIFO team, the Polish Ministry of Digital Affairs showcased the initiatives that shape the country’s digital administration strategies and regulations with a special focus on interoperability: the Integrated State Digitisation Programme, the Act on Computerisation and the National Interoperability Framework. These initiatives are currently under review to serve as the legal foundation for the country’s State Information Architecture (SIA), a topic that was extensively discussed afterward. The core concept of the SIA is a repository emphasising semantic and technical interoperability layers, thereby creating a strong connection with SEMIC activities.
Following on these insights, the SEMIC team provided an overview of their services (which can be consulted on the Interoperable Europe Support Centre) as well as a reflection on how their solutions could support Poland in its interoperability journey. An engaging discussion followed about best practices and experiences of other Member States, based on the novelties that the Interoperable Europe Act (IEA) brings. To conclude the session, Poland shared information about the IT project monitoring assessments in place in the country.
Before ending this insightful first day, the SEMIC team facilitated a workshop on ‘Core Vocabularies and Application Profiles (& Style Guide) for Base Registries with a focus on ABR services and BRegDCAT-AP. The SEMIC team also presented pilot projects of other Member States, which offered some food for thought to the Polish participants.
The second day in Warsaw started with three presentations on how AI can drive public sector innovation with a focus on interoperability. The NIFO team presented the AI Act and the GovTech ecosystem, while the SEMIC team highlighted its AI4Interoperability activities. To finish, the Polish team shared excellent insights about their AI Strategy in the public sector.
After an introduction of the Interoperable Europe Act (IEA) on the first day of the Roadshow, the NIFO team deep dived into a number of specific requirements, including training, peer-review and the Interoperable Europe Community. Through this session, a reflection on the Polish SIA portal and the SIA Academy was made as they could be relevant in the context of the IEA implementation.
Before ending the Roadshow, the Polish team provided an overview of the priorities during the upcoming Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union, which will take place from January to June 2025. The SEMIC and NIFO teams applauded the enthusiasm and efforts for the upcoming Presidency.
Conclusion
The Interoperable Europe Polish Roadshow, co-organised by the SEMIC and NIFO team, proved to be a successful event during which participants shared knowledge and discussed future opportunities, ranging from the legislation implementation to AI and other pilot projects.
The European Commission would like to express its gratitude the Polish participants for their hospitality and engaging discussions during these two days.
Curious about other roadshows? Check out more information about the Estonian Roadshow (16-17 February 2023), Romanian Roadshow (9-10 March 2023) or Finnish Roadshow (20-21 February 2024)!