The world’s leading digital nations?

Five countries have formed a group of “world-leading digital governments” and met this weekend to discuss: how to improve procurement for public sector IT solutions, increase citizen trust, design better digital services, and manage public sector IT talent.

Called the D5, the group is comprised of Estonia, Israel, New Zealand, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. The United States has so far been declined membership, GovInsider understands. Launching the summit, Estonian Prime Minister Taavi Rõivas said that his country’s vision is for “zero bureaucracy and invisible government”.

“The best service is the one you do not have to do anything for, but gets taken care for you – even before you realize you need it,” he added. The Estonian Government knows when a child is born and automatically registers it with a simple email asking the name of the child and the bank account to receive the child’s allowance.

“That’s all we need to provide the services. No need for hassle with applications (although they are online), no need for much analytics even,” he said. The Prime Minister added that digital services should be as good as private sector options, and that governments “should not be afraid to copy” ideas from elsewhere.

“Why should it be more difficult for me to book my next doctor’s visit than it is for me to book my next night’s stay on booking.com or Airbnb?” Announcements at the summit included a new GovTech fund in Israel; digital partnerships between the UK, Estonia and New Zealand; and improved data sharing plans from the British Government.

Estonia’s Prime Minister said that he wants to see the D5 “really become a platform for joint initiatives in the next years. We could be jointly crafting the digital government of tomorrow, showing the way for rest of the world to follow.” The country has launched internet voting and a digital government initiative where Cabinet Ministers vote on policy resolutions online.