Today, the Ukrainian state is taking the first step towards e-democracy - Diia public services portal is launching local petitions. This was stated by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a speech at Diia Summit Spring 2021 within the All-Ukrainian Forum "Ukraine 30. Digitization".
The Head of State noted that Ukraine had already carried out a digital revolution.
"Earlier, to get a number of permits, you had to pay bribes. Now you only have to pay for the Internet. It used to be ten offices. Now - one website. Previously - 50 certificates in queues. Now - three or four clicks on the smartphone. Earlier - weeks and months. Now - 10 or 20 minutes to open a sole proprietorship and a limited liability company online,” the President said.
According to him, last year only 5% of entrepreneurs opened business online, and now - 50%.
"We are the first country in the world where digital passports have the same legal force as paper ones. A number of documents - in a smartphone, the ability to register a newborn baby - in a smartphone, the ability to change the place of registration - in a smartphone. Everything in a smartphone. In total, dozens of online services have been launched. Diia portal and mobile application, which are used today by more than 10 million citizens of Ukraine," said Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Thanks to Diia, more than 800,000 entrepreneurs were able to apply for financial assistance during quarantine restrictions, the President added.
In addition, the President stressed, the digital transformation is a tool to combat corruption, because the transfer of all public services online will destroy the basis for it - mediation and the human factor.
Also, according to the Head of State, a single platform of high-quality, protected and unified state registers is being created, on which "data will run, not taxpayers".
"Our main priority remains the issue of national security. In this context, the full construction of a digital state enables all bodies and services to work effectively online, under any circumstances, anywhere, at any time," said Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
In addition, as the President assured, on August 24, 2021, Ukraine will enter the paperless regime.
"As promised, no papers for government agencies. Not a single government agency will demand papers or certificates from the citizens of Ukraine for the provision of public services. And we will do everything to make the "state without paper" really exist not on paper," the President said.
He also noted that last year Ukraine took part in the Open Data Maturity study for the first time and entered the top 20, receiving a better result than the European average.
"Another point of my program is access to high-speed Internet for all residents of our Ukraine. In the last six months alone, more than two million citizens have gained access to 4G for the first time. One million Ukrainians have learned the basics of digital literacy. And this year we strive to provide access to the fixed Internet to three thousand Ukrainian villages, their schools, hospitals and libraries," said Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
He reminded that another point of his presidential program was to enable the citizens of Ukraine to participate in the adoption of important decisions via the Internet.
"Today is a significant day when we are taking the first step towards e-democracy. And this step is the launch of electronic petitions in Diia,” the Head of State said.
The President thanked the team of the Ministry of Digital Transformation for their work.
"I believe that together we will definitely build a country without bugs and viruses," the President concluded.
