Greece makes infrastructure data available
Creating a digital infrastructure register
The Greek Ministry of Digital Policy, Telecommunications and Information has embraced the principle of openness, and announced the creation of a digital infrastructure register helping public administrations, companies and citizens to get information on infrastructure and infrastructure plans. The initiative is made possible thanks to the legislation based on the EU Directive for reduction of the cost of high-speed broadband roll-out (2014/61/EU). The first use case for the register will be the telecom infrastructure. The Ministry plans to add water, gas and sewage infrastructure at a later stage.
For instance, when companies or citizens needed to undertake construction work that included digging a hole in the ground, they previously had to liaise with several different infrastructure operators to check whether there were pipelines or cables underneath. This one-stop-shop for infrastructure data allows users to seamlessly get this data at one place. The register will also make it easier to plan nation-wide telecom and broadband infrastructure upgrades, as stated by the Ministry.
The Digital Greece Infrastructure Register is based on a Geographic Information System (GIS), using geographic maps to display the available infrastructure information and geospatial data. Improving the access to infrastructure information online is expected to reduce public and private investment costs. The system will gradually add online services, and the Ministry also plans to use the information in the system to prepare policies and legislation.
More information about this initiative is available at the website of the Greek Ministry of Digital Policy, Telecommunications and Information (in Greek).