ABRUZZO. Digitizing procedures and experimenting with Artificial Intelligence to support Municipalities in the preliminary phase of administrative acts: these are the issues placed at the center of the Agreement signed today at the Aurum in Pescara between the Abruzzo Region, the Department of Public Function (Dfp) and Formez Pa during the Event «OpenHub: Abruzzo generator of skills».
The event was the culmination of a year of work done by the Abruzzo Region, in collaboration with Anci, Upi and Uncem, on “Hub delle Competenze”, the pilot project called to strengthen Municipalities and administrations in the spending of cohesion funds through incessant work of “door to door” training, as well as recognition of hitches and support in reporting procedures.
One year after the launch of this unique system project in Italy, launched in Vasto by the Minister for Public Administration Paolo Zangrillo, the Department of the Presidency of the Abruzzo Region and the Department of Public Function have intended to strengthen the initiative by providing in the agreement a control room chaired by the Department of Public Function itself, which thus assumes a central and strategic role for the definition of the guidelines, also defined thanks to the support of the Abruzzo region.
It is the same minister who today gave the go-ahead for the upgrade of the project, strengthening his commitment to the Abruzzo region, strong in the results of a year of work presented to the institutional audience of authorities, mayors and administrators.
The results, illustrated during the works by director Grimaldi, translate overall into 119 million and 438 thousand euros of interventions dislodged valid for the 2000-2020 PSC after the work conducted by the Abruzzo Region staff and Formez technical assistance.
In short, they are resources which return to the availability of the Municipalities and communities of Abruzzo. Suffice it to say that the total size of the initially stranded projects amounted to 137 million and 347 thousand euros, so that more than 81% of the projects that presented critical issues were unblocked.
To date, the only “encrusted” situations are mostly the result of disputes with the contracting companies.
This network work examined 3,435 projects whose problems were analyzed and processed individually by the task force set up by the Region alongside the administrators and the RUPs to resolve the problems. The discussion developed over the course of 17 focus groups (16 aimed at municipalities and one at the provinces) which involved 107 mayors and 276 administrators or technicians. From this discussion, a plan was born to improve administrative capacity which led to an increase in the culture of cooperation between local authorities and the adoption of organizational solutions aimed at resolving obligations and reducing the time needed to land funds.
With these premises, we arrive today at the signing of an agreement towards the digital transition with the Department of Public Function, in collaboration with Formez Pa. The objective is to arrive at the generation of administrative procedures for the advancement of expenditure in a standardized and digital manner.
«This project was born from the clear need to improve and optimize skills within local public institutions, in line with the renewal process of the entire PA that we are carrying forward – underlines the Minister for Public Administration, Senator Paolo Zangrillo – Today’s agreement further strengthens capacity building actions, fully exploiting the potential of digitalization and, in particular, of Artificial Intelligence. An action strategy based on interinstitutional collaboration. Only in this way can we achieve the development and enhancement of the administrative capacity of our administrations, essential for the relaunch of our territories and our country”.
«The Abruzzo Region – declares the President of the Region Marsilio – leads a methodological innovation that constitutes a training ground for the implementation of the programming interventions of the 2021-2027 cycle. It is no coincidence that Abruzzo is one of the “Regional Innovation Valleys” identified by the European Commission which recognized its innovative potential and the central role in future European economic and social developments. Our Region has been recognized for its potential drive innovation processesentering a narrow circle of areas to high innovation in Europe. We were aware of this when, with 2 million euros of FSC funds, we decided a year ago to start the Hub of skills. This has allowed us, in the space of a year, to no longer be marginal, but central in the European development processes”.
«The Agreement signed today – declared the president of Formez John Anastasi on the agreement – is a source of great satisfaction for our Institute, and is confirmation that the relationship between Formez and the Abruzzo Region is solid and important, as well as the goodness of what is being done together. After the ‘Skills HUB’, with which Abruzzo systematizes the strengthening of its public administrations, in a unitary logic of financial instruments, the step forward is that of Artificial Intelligence. We have moved quickly, especially in the field of training, but we also have other plans so that this tool is an opportunity for Public Administrations and the community. We hope to be able to start, together with the Abruzzo Region, shared experiences in this field, experiences that can enhance the knowledge and vocation of Formez and that can further enhance Abruzzo, as a leader in innovative paths”.
