E-Governance Academy

13/08/2026

Great to see our colleague Piret Hirv joining the international jury of the MITP Awards 2026! 🌟

Have an innovative solution or company worth recognising in Moldova? Applications for the MITP Awards 2026 are open – apply and put your work in front of an international jury of experts 👉 https://awards.mitp.md/

Meet the Jury at MITP Awards 🌟

🏆 We are proud to welcome Piret Hirv as an international jury member at MITP Awards 2026!

Piret is Head of the AI and Data Management Competence Centre at the e-Governance Academy (eGA), where she helps governments turn data and emerging technologies into practical improvements for citizens. 🌍 She works at the intersection of public sector innovation, data governance, and AI supporting governments in building modern, efficient, and citizen-focused services.

🇪🇪 Coming from Estonia, the world's first fully digital country and a global benchmark for e-governance, Piret brings first-hand insight into what it takes to turn bold digital ambitions into services that actually work for people. Her background spans healthcare, digital government, and data-driven service design - a perspective shaped by real experience, from Estonia's Ministry of Social Affairs to leading health-tech innovation at Tehnopol.

We're honored to have Piret on the MITP Awards 2026 jury, bringing deep expertise in digital transformation and AI-driven public services to help spotlight the companies driving innovation in Moldova and beyond!

👉 Applications are open. Apply now at https://awards.mitp.md/

12/08/2026

🎧 Good digital services start with good data.

In this episode of the , Piret Saartee, Head of the Digital Services Competence Centre at eGA, explains why quality is fundamental to digital transformation - and why it's becoming more important as governments adopt .

We discuss:
✅ How accurate, well-organised and machine-readable data supports better decisions and public services
✅ Why high-quality open data can drive innovation and create opportunities for businesses
✅ Why data governance and quality management should be part of the entire service lifecycle
✅ How governments can put good data management into practice

🎧 Listen to the episode to learn how governments can build a solid foundation for the next wave of digital innovation 👉 https://ega.ee/data-quality/

11/08/2026

Preparing today for the cyber incidents of tomorrow – this time in , Ukraine🇺🇦.
Despite ongoing Russian attacks, around 60 professionals gathered in Odesa for the 3️⃣ regional Tabletop Exercise ( ) to strengthen their ability to respond to major cyber incidents.

Participants from public authorities, municipal enterprises, energy companies, healthcare institutions, law enforcement and security bodies worked through a realistic scenario. They practiced how to detect threats early, make decisions under pressure, coordinate their response and recover to keep critical services running.

💬 “As a major Ukrainian city on the Black Sea, Odesa faces Russian attacks both from the air and in cyberspace. Cybersecurity is directly linked to the resilience of the entire region. We need institutions to be prepared and able to maintain critical functions even under the most difficult conditions,” said Andrii Neuhodnikov, Deputy Head of the Odesa Regional Military Administration.

The exercise was organised by the E-Governance Academy, the State Service of Special Communications and Information Protection of Ukraine (SSSCIP) and the Odesa Regional Military Administration, with 🇪🇺 EU funding under the project and support from CISO Campus.

🦾Odesa marks the third stop in a series of 10 Cybersecurity Tabletop Exercises across Ukraine. Eight more will follow, bringing practical cyber crisis training closer to professionals in the regions.

For eGA and Академія електронного управління, this work is part of a broader effort to strengthen Ukraine’s practical cyber preparedness through the EU-funded EU4CyberUA project and the ESTDEV-supported UA-EE Cyber Shield via the project.

Let's prepare today to respond stronger tomorrow! 💪🛡️

European Union in Ukraine
Державна служба спеціального зв'язку та захисту інформації України
Одеська обласна державна адміністрація
ESTDEV - Estonian Centre for International Development

07/08/2026

What does it take for a country to be ready for the next threat? A clear plan. The right institutions. Skilled people. A solid legal framework. But first, you need to know where you stand.

The National Cyber Security Index ( ) helps governments take that step. With the latest addition of 🇨🇻Cabo Verde, 🇲🇭 Marshall Islands, 🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea, 🇹🇱Timor-Leste, and 🇦🇩 Andorra, the NCSI now covers 155 countries! And more are joining every month.

Countries use the NCSI as an official benchmark to assess and improve their cybersecurity. The index helps governments identify the key cybersecurity capacities they need to strengthen and gives a detailed assessment across 49 indicators ranging from legislation and cloud security to crisis response and cybercrime prevention.

Developed and maintained by the E-Governance Academy, the NCSI is a trusted resource for policymakers, researchers and international partners working to strengthen resilience.

Is your country in the index? Find out 👉 www.ncsi.ega.ee

05/08/2026

🏔️ If each of Trembita’s 30 billion data exchanges had required a paper certificate, the resulting pile would be higher than Mount Hoverla, which is the highest peak of Ukraine.

Thanks to Trembita, that paper mountain exists only in our imagination.

This milestone has special meaning for the E-Governance Academy team. Together with Cybernetica, we developed Trembita and continue to modernise it in close cooperation with the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, with support from the EU Delegation of Ukraine.

Behind the 30 billion figure is the daily work of Ukraine’s digital state. Trembita enables government registers and information systems to exchange data securely and automatically. This means people can receive public services faster, without carrying paper documents or providing the same information more than once.

The estimated impact is significant:
✅ 3 billion hours saved on waiting and administrative procedures;
✅ 2,2 billion+ EUR saved on travel, paper documents and unnecessary procedures;
✅49,200 tonnes of CO₂ emissions avoided through digitalisation.

Our team is now supporting the implementation of Trembita 2.0, one of the flagship activities of the EU-funded project.

The new version will improve the system’s architecture, expand opportunities for secure data exchange and provide the foundation for new digital services.

Strong digital infrastructure often works out of sight. But its impact is clear: data moves securely, while people spend less time dealing with bureaucracy.

📸 Illustration by Дія

Міністерство цифрової трансформації України
European Union in Ukraine

04/08/2026

In early summer, Young European Ambassadors from 🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina visited the E-Governance Academy in Tallinn to learn how the and initiatives are strengthening cybersecurity across the Western Balkans.

In their article, they reflect on the visit and share insights from an interview with Milan Sekuloski, Senior Expert at eGA, on how the region is improving cyber crisis preparedness and raising cyber awareness.

Read the full article on WeBalkans ➡ https://webalkans.eu/en/anybody-with-a-phone-is-part-of-cybersecurity/

📸 Ajna Mešić, Young European Ambassador of Bosnia and Herzegovina

29/07/2026

🎧 Looking for something to listen to this summer?

These were the two most listened-to episodes of the Digital Government Podcast in the first half of 2026. If you missed them - or would like to revisit them - now's the perfect time.

1️⃣ What leadership through digital change looks like
Taimar Peterkop, former Estonian State Secretary and Senior Expert at eGA, shares practical lessons from more than two decades in public leadership, reflecting on what it takes to lead an organisation through uncertainty, and crises. The podcast is hosted by Merle Maigre, Head of the Cybersecurity Competence Centre at eGA.

🎙️Listen: https://ega.ee/podcast-blog-what-leadership-through-digital-change-actually-looks-like/

2️⃣ AI in education starts with a question, not an answer
As Estonia brings into schools through the AI Leap programme, Ivo Visak, CEO of AI Leap, explores why successful AI adoption is less about technology and more about asking the right questions, supporting teachers and preparing students for the future.

🎙️Listen: https://ega.ee/podcast-blog-ai-in-education/

Catch up on all episodes exploring the ideas and people shaping digital government around the world: https://ega.ee/category/podcast/

27/07/2026

Every teacher or family doctor who recognises a phishing attack makes the digital world a little safer. When thousands of professionals improve their , the benefits extend far beyond each individual. 💪💪

Recently, around 7,000 teachers and healthcare workers in completed introductory cyber hygiene training to strengthen their digital literacy and cybersecurity skills, helping them protect personal data, recognise cyber threats, and use digital services more safely.

Implemented by the State Agency for Personal Data Protection of , and developed together with the E-Governance Academy (eGA), the programme reached more than 40 locations across the country, bringing practical cybersecurity training to professionals in every region.

🇪🇺 Funded by the European Union under the initiative, the programme contributes to stronger national cybersecurity and helps build a lasting culture of cyber awareness in .

🤝 As part of the effort, eGA and Expertise France are committed to supporting our partners across in building the knowledge and practical skills needed for secure and resilient digital societies.

European Union in Kyrgyzstan
Жеке маалыматтарды коргоо боюнча мамлекеттик агенттик
Expertise France

24/07/2026

👋 Say hi to our summer interns! We're happy to welcome three sharp and talented interns to the eGA team: Yi-Rong Tsai from - Tallinn University of Technology, and Julie Heng and Isabel Rask from Stanford Law School.

What inspired them to join E-Governance Academy ?

💬 Julie: “I first encountered Estonia's X-Road system in a tech policy course in college. That course was largely spent on the obstacles that make digital governance so difficult in the 🇺🇸United States (e.g. fragmented voting systems, accessibility gaps, privacy failures), so stood out as an exciting counterexample of digital infrastructure that citizens actually use. It’s been an eye-opening opportunity to work on these projects and learn concretely about how different countries build their underlying technical, legal, and trust architecture.”

💬 Isa: "When looking for summer opportunities, I wanted to learn more about how technological innovation can support democratic governance, and was particularly curious about the geopolitical implications of emerging technology adoption. Estonia and eGA’s position as a leader in makes it the ideal place to explore these questions, and I have greatly enjoyed my time here!”

💬 Yi-Rong: “Joining eGA felt like a natural step after studying in the Public Sector Innovation and e-Governance at Taltech. Throughout the master’s programme, I became increasingly interested in how can make governments more transparent, efficient, and people-centered. I'm excited to learn from experts who are shaping digital governance in practice and to contribute to projects with real international impact.”

Welcome on board! We wish you an inspiring and rewarding summer at the e-Governance Academy! ☀️

22/07/2026

Every citizen's digital journey begins with a trusted identity. Supported by the European Union under the initiative, 🇧🇩 has taken an important step towards more citizen-centred public services by embarking on modernising its birth and death registration system.

As an implementing partner of the 🇪🇺 European Union-funded "E-ffective e-governance" project, the E-Governance Academy (eGA) will help redesign the service by improving business processes, defining the requirements for a renewed digital system, and providing strategic and technical expertise throughout its implementation.

🖋️The Memorandum was signed by Dr Abu Nasar Mohammad Abdullah, Registrar General of Birth and Death Registration, Md Luthfur Rahman, Deputy Registrar General; Piret Kuhlbars, Team Leader at the e-Governance Academy; and Arsen Stepanyan, Team Leader at the British Council.

Together with the British Council and our government partners, Division, Bangladesh, we are helping make Bangladesh's most essential public services simpler, more efficient, and more accessible for more than 170 million citizens.

That's the kind of impact that makes our work truly meaningful. 🍒


British Council Bangladesh
European Union in Bangladesh