European Interoperability Framework

These are notes from the course “Interoperability: an introductory course” which can be found on this page of the EU Academy.

• European Interoperability Framework (EIF) is part of the Communication (COM(2017)134) from the European Commission adopted on 23 March 2017. The framework gives specific guidance on how to set up interoperable digital public services.
• EIF toolbox is an interactive portal which provides guidance for national public administrations with the goal of supporting them in the implementation of the European Interoperability Framework (EIF) and fostering the development of interoperable digital services at both the national and European level.
• The Knowledge Centre gives access to all the information and resources published by NIFO to learn more about the recent developments in the field of digital public administration and interoperability across Europe.

Principles

The framework is built upon 12 underlying principles that guide European public administrations. These include fundamental values such as openness, transparency, and user-centricity. A significant focus is also placed on digital-ready policy making, which aims to ensure that new policies are capable of being implemented digitally from the outset, although this currently applies mainly to the Commission.

Layers

Interoperability is not just technical; it spans four distinct layers:

1. Legal Interoperability: Ensuring that organisations with different legal frameworks can work together.
2. Organisational Interoperability: Aligning business processes and responsibilities.
3. Semantic Interoperability: Ensuring data has the preserved meaning across systems. A prime example is the DCAT-AP (DCAT Application Profile), developed to describe public sector datasets and enable cross-border searches.
4. Technical Interoperability: The linking of systems via open standards and infrastructures.

Conceptual Models

The EIF proposes a conceptual model for integrated public services. This model emphasizes a modular and loose coupling approach, encouraging the reuse of existing solutions and information sources. By using common basic components, public administrations can avoid duplication and streamline the development of cross-border services.

Monitoring Mechanisms

To ensure effective implementation, the EIF employs specific monitoring mechanisms. Interoperability assessments are a core tool, encouraging public administrations to “think before you act” by identifying barriers and potential impacts before developing new services. These assessments act as a check to ensuring gap reduction between policy design and IT implementation.

EIF implementation: a case study

Practical implementation is seen in initiatives like GovTech4All, a consortium designed to foster a single GovTech market across Europe. The European Interoperability Act further supports this by establishing Interoperability Regulatory Sandboxes. These sandboxes provide controlled environments for testing innovative interoperability solutions, particularly useful for overcoming legal obstacles in cross-border contexts.