Spain IT Policies
Fecha Sábado, agosto 10 @ 21:18:59
Tema España :: Spain
| General policies
Spain has a number of general policies in areas such as procurement, demonstration, etc., which are described under these headings below. In February 1999, the Ministry of Finance set up a working group, which includes representatives of several government departments, to study taxation of electronic commerce.
The group’s main task is to prepare a document to be submitted to the Spanish Tax Authorities on the adoption of an official position on this topic and the possibility of introducing legal changes and administrative procedures to deal with the challenges of electronic commerce. On December 28 1999 the Spanish Government presented the Initiative on the Information Society "INFO XXI: La Sociedad de la Informacion para todos" with a budget of 420.000 million pesetas (about USD2530 million) for the next 4 years. Its contents are available on the Internet: http://infoxxi.es .
Government procurement
In Spain, the purchase of IT equipment software and services from private sources by the government is regulated by the Government Procurement Act. Since 1983 there has been an Interministerial Commission for the Acquisition of Computer Goods and Services (CIABSI) whose functions cover all technical aspects of government IT purchases.
CIABSI is responsible for technical assessment of all public expenditures on IT equipment, software and services exceeding USD 105 000. For purchases below this limit, there are similar commissions at the department level. CIABSI’s decisions are final. CIABSI also defines government IT procurement policies and evaluates costs related to technical assistance, maintenance and other variables associated with IT equipment. CIABSI has launched several projects to help administrative units to select the best equipment for their needs.
Government demonstration and development projects
PISTA is an initiative of the Ministry of Economic Development to promote advanced telecommunications systems (ATS) in enterprises in order to improve services to citizens and take advantage of the information potential of telecommunication networks. The programme funds various pilot projects dealing with the development of prototypes, according to specifications defined by user groups, which pledge to use the results. Some of the sectors covered by PISTA are: public administrations; graphic design, publishing, publicity; education and training, libraries, museums; transportation; health; cable network services, etc.
CIABSI has carried out several development projects, including: SSD-CIABSI (software to help administrative units to purchase ITC products); SILICE (an information system for electronic tender and contracting); EFFORTS (energy-efficient improvement in the use of computer equipment in European public administrations).
The RED System of the General Treasury of the Social Security permits the interchange of information and documents by electronic means (especially EDI and magnetic support) between the Treasury, enterprises and professional associations. A value-added service is responsible for the communication, transporting and storing information and providing data on the date and hour of arrival. The authentication is guaranteed by an authorised electronic signature. This process is currently used by enterprises to submit the list of employees, pay fees and obtain certificates. It can also be used to obtain information on employees’ affiliation, or variations on the status of employees.
The National Securities and Exchange Commission (CNMV) has adopted a system called CIFRADOC, which makes possible the exchange of documents by electronic means. It is made available to financial agents and uses a crypto system for encryption and authentication of communication with the bodies it supervises.
At the Ministry of Finance, the Spanish tax administration has established standards for the use of telematics for the presentation of the personal income tax declaration. In 1999, more than 20 000 citizens submitted their declarations electronically. The process is wholly electronic (except in cases where printed documents must be attached), from the submission of the income tax return form to actual payment and sending receipts for payment. The National Mint is the public authority on certification. It has launched Project CERES to authenticate communications between citizens, enterprises and institutions and the Administration. CERES is based on an intelligent card which stores the identity and signature of the user.
Standards
CIABSI participates in various EU projects relating to the definition of IT standards in the public sector, namely, the Public Procurement Group (PPG), a group of senior officials for IT standardisation; the European Handbook for Open Systems (EPHOS); and EUROMETODO (European Methodology for the Acquisition of Information Systems and Related Services). The Ministry of Economic Development has recently enacted a Royal Decree-Law on digital signature (September 1999). The full text can be found at http://www.map.es/csi/pg7010.htm.
R&D programmes
There are two main R&D programmes in IT-related areas. One is funded by the National R&D Plan for R&D grants in ITC mostly for universities and public research institutions. In 1997, R&D projects in the ITC area were about 15% of the Plan’s total funds, or approximately USD 23.7 million. The other is a sub-programme of the ATYCA Initiative of the Ministry of Industry and Energy to promote industrial R&D. ATYCA devoted USD 30.4 million in 1998 (29.4% of its total resources) to partially finance IT R&D by business enterprises.
Technology diffusion
There are several initiatives to promote IT among enterprises. For example, the Ministry of Industry and Energy has started a project to help industrial enterprises adopt IT. The project, called TICTRAD, involves 100 enterprises in traditional sectors (construction, textiles, furniture, etc.) in nine different regions. A common methodology is applied to assess the needs of each firm in terms of IT tools. Then a specific implementation plan is defined for each firm and technical assistance is provided until the tools are in place. Examples are production process control, electronic data interchange (EDI) or Intranet. A network of technology centres and consulting firms provides the technical support for the project.
The Ministry of Economic Development (Ministerio de Fomento) has launched a project, called ARTEPYME (Regional Initiatives in Telecommunications for SMEs), to promote advanced telecommunications systems (ATS) in enterprises. The programme is designed to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) utilise ATS. Grants include partial funding of feasibility studies, pilot projects and ATS implementation.
International co-operation
International co-operation focuses on R&D, particularly through participation in the EU Framework Programmes. In the Fourth Framework Programme, ITC projects amounted to 31.7% of the total funds obtained by Spain, or approximately ECU 189 million. The budget for ITC in the Fourth Framework Programme was 32.9% of the total budget.
Spanish firms also take part in EUREKA, the European programme for co-operative R&D in advanced technologies. In 1998, of the 186 new EUREKA projects, 46 involved Spanish enterprises and ten of the projects were in the IT area. Total costs for the Spanish IT projects were USD 14.2 million.
Iberoeka, a programme modelled on EUREKA, is funded by the Ministry of Industry and Energy. It provides funds for co-operative projects between firms in Spain, Portugal and Latin America. Iberoeka has funded 39 co-operative projects, 18 of which are in ITC fields. The amount of funds involved for ITC projects is USD 22.5 million, of which USD 15.4 million were grants.
| Este artículo proviene de Kalysis Community
https://kalysis.com/content
El URL de esta nota es:
https://kalysis.com/content/article.php?sid=92
English Translation |
|
|