Iceland is among the top five nations in the world when it comes to digital public services and infrastructure. According to the United Nations’ annual digital government assessment, the eGovernment Development Index, Iceland is ranked fifth globally, out of 193 countries. This is up from the nation’s twelfth place ranking in 2020.
Denmark came in first place in the rankings, followed by Finland, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, and then Iceland in fifth. The remaining top ten nations are: Sweden (sixth place), Australia (7), Estonia (8), The Netherlands (9), and the United States (10).
The UN’s bases its assessment on three main areas and indexes: digital services (Online Service Index); ingenuity (Human Capital Index); and technical infrastructure (Telecommunication Infrastructure Index). Iceland ranked particularly high in both ingenuity and technical infrastructure. The Icelandic government has made digitizing services a particular priority this term, with the goal of making all applicable applications, payments, and receipts for services accessible online.
“The government has set itself the goal of Iceland becoming a leader in digital public services, and surveys show that good progress is being made,” reads an announcement about the rankings on the government’s website. “Digital services are already simplifying people’s lives—saving time while improving service.”
The announcement also points to the European Commission’s eGovernment Benchmark 2022, in which Iceland ranked fourth amongst the 27 EU member states, as well as Norway, Switzerland, Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Turkey. The Benchmark compares how governments across Europe deliver digital public services by asking citizens from the participating countries to visit and evaluate local websites. Iceland rose three places in this assessment since 2021.
See the full rankings and Iceland’s full eGovernment Development assessment, in English, here.
