Fraunhofer Institute for Experimental Software Engineering IESEA Digital Ecosystem for rural counties in Germany
The goal of the reference project “Smarte.Land.Regionen”, in which Fraunhofer IESE plays a central role, is the digitalization of public services in rural areas.
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Reference Project: Smarte.Land.Regionen
With the model project “Smarte.Land.Regionen”, the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture is driving forward digitalization in rural areas. The use of digital technologies is intended to significantly improve living and working conditions for the population. The use of new technical possibilities is crucial to keeping the living and working environment attractive, especially in rural areas.
Fraunhofer IESE is developing a Smarte.Land.Regionen ecosystem that aims to improve services of general interest through digital technologies. In this context, research will be conducted, for example, on the role a county can play in a Digital Ecosystem and on how the transfer of knowledge between the stakeholders can best succeed. The Smarte.Land.Regionen ecosystem connects different stakeholders - consultants and solution providers on the one hand and counties and citizens on the other.
At the center of the ecosystem is the platform with the marketplace. Digital solutions from the private and public sectors are made available to municipalities on the marketplace. The interface must meet the requirements of both private sector players and local authorities who want to access the information in the tendering and awarding process. The inclusion of the marketplace in the BMWSB's phased plan for smart cities and regions is aimed at sustainable and long-term further development.
In order to be able to actively involve the citizens and other stakeholders in the developments in the model regions, the counties are also provided with possibilities for participation via a participation platform.
Process support commissioned by Fraunhofer IESE serves as a link between the counties and the research project. Among other things, the counties are advised on the implementation of their digital solutions and on the design of processes for citizen participation, competence transfer, and strategy implementation.
The findings from the project are recorded in the Smarte.Land.Regionen Toolset, which serves as a knowledge transfer.
The challenge
- Lack of coherent digital solutions to support citizens in rural areas
Contributions of Fraunhofer IESE
- Overall project management
- Conception of a Digital Ecosystem and an underlying platform and solutions in the Smart.Country.Regions
- Conception of continuation models
- Technical implementation of the Digital Ecosystem Smarte.Land.Regionen
- Development and operation of the CONSUL participation platform in seven model regions and a further 13 districts (special projects)
Goals / results
- Development of a digital platform for the “Smarte.Land.Regionen” ecosystem
- Development of four central solutions running on the platform and the integration of further solutions
- Close cooperation with seven selected rural districts in Germany
- Onboarding at least 30 additional municipalities as users of the services
- Recruitment of at least 20 additional stakeholders to offer their solutions on the platform
- Organizational development of the rural districts with regard to digitalization