Digital citizen apps: How to improve our local service!

Digital citizen apps: How to improve our local service!

In recent years, digitalization has been booming in municipalities. Market Swabia in particular shows how useful citizen apps can be. Loud Mercury Over a third of residents have already installed the “citizen app”. This app not only allows citizens to book appointments, but also to report defects in public spaces. The ease of use and the wide range of services offered are particularly well received, reports Mayor Valentina Dahms.

But Markt Schwaben is not the only municipality that relies on digital solutions. In the neighboring town of Kirchseeon, the “Together–For Each Other” app has been online for two years and is very popular with over 1,500 registered users. Moosach also recently introduced the “Heimat-Info” app, which provides a digital event calendar and current community news. Around 50 groups have organized themselves here to be active locally.

New opportunities for citizens

Digitalization in municipalities is increasingly perceived as a trend that not only improves the service for district citizens, but also relieves the burden on municipalities. The district office even offers the “waste app”, which not only displays location-based collection calendars, but also allows users to directly report defects at recycling islands. This type of direct communication between citizens and administration is received positively by many sides and is likely to reduce the amount of work in town halls in the long term.

The advantages of citizen apps are manifold. They enable immediate availability of important information, promote citizen participation through surveys and discussions, and increase the efficiency of municipalities through digital inquiries and automated processes. Again Technology and start-up center reports, when introducing a new app, clear goals must be set in order to address the needs of both citizens and the administration.

Opportunities and challenges of digital citizen participation

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly changed the way citizen participation works. Traditional formats, such as face-to-face events, had to give way. Digital participation formats were initially hardly used, but their acceptance increased over time. A study by the Berlin Institute for Participation examined how the relationship to digital citizen participation has changed, especially in times of social distancing measures. Municipal Digital Forum describes that there is now increasing acceptance of digital formats, although there are also challenges such as technical barriers and data protection concerns.

For many communities, the step towards digitalization is an important signal towards the future. While people in Grafing are currently looking for suitable software for their own app, the example of Moosach shows that digitalization also comes with costs - around 240 euros per month for the app infrastructure.

Overall, it is clear that the trend of citizen apps is on the rise in Bavarian municipalities. The variety of possible applications and the ability to promote direct communication between citizens and administration could fundamentally change the way we interact with each other in the future.