Romania’s public administration is entering a new phase of digital transformation, one shaped not only by software platforms and online services, but increasingly by artificial intelligence. In this context, ICDL Romania and the National Agency of Civil Servants (ANFP) have signed a strategic partnership aimed at building the digital and AI competencies required to support meaningful and sustainable reform.
The collaboration expands the DigiReady – The First Step Toward Recognized Digital Skills campaign and adapts it specifically for civil servants, marking a concrete step toward consolidating the digital skills competences infrastructure that underpins modern, technology-enabled governance.
Technology Alone Is Not Transformation
Over the past years, digitalization has become a strategic priority for Romania. Yet investments in IT systems and digital platforms cannot deliver impact unless public employees are equipped to use them effectively and responsibly.
As artificial intelligence tools begin to enter administrative workflows, from automated document processing to data analysis and decision-support systems, the conversation is shifting from access to technology toward competence in using it.
Modern administration is no longer defined by the applications it acquires, but by the ability of its workforce to:
- Formulate clear and relevant requirements for digital and AI systems
- Interpret and critically assess automated outputs
- Understand the limitations and risks of AI-driven processes
- Integrate intelligent tools into workflows while maintaining accountability
Without these capabilities, digitalization risks remaining superficial.
Addressing Romania’s Digital Skills Gap
The urgency is underscored by Eurostat data showing that only 28% of Romanians aged 16–74 possess at least basic digital skills, compared to an EU average of 55%.
Within the public sector, this gap has direct implications for administrative efficiency, institutional transparency, and the ability to deliver citizen-centered services in an increasingly digital society.
By placing digital and AI competencies at the core of institutional development, the ICDL–ANFP partnership reframes skills not as occasional training exercises, but as strategic infrastructure.
DigiReady: A Gateway to AI-Ready Public Institutions
The initiative begins with the ICDL DigiReady Quiz, a free and accessible tool designed to familiarize civil servants with internationally recognized digital competence standards. While introductory, the quiz serves as the entry point to a broader ecosystem of structured training programs and certification pathways tailored to public administration needs.
The longer-term objective is to enable institutions to move beyond subjective assessments of their “digital maturity” and toward measurable competence benchmarks aligned with the European DigComp and national DigCompRo frameworks and the ICDL certification standard.
In practical terms, this means building a public sector workforce capable not only of operating digital systems, but of engaging confidently and critically with AI technologies as they become embedded in governance.
A Long-Term Investment in Administrative Resilience
ICDL is a global standard for digital skills certification. In Romania, hundreds of thousands of students and professionals have earned ICDL certifications over the past two decades.
By extending its expertise to public administration through this partnership, ICDL Romania positions ICDL digital and AI literacy modules as a cornerstone of institutional resilience.
As artificial intelligence reshapes how information is processed, decisions are supported, and services are delivered, the modernization of public administration will depend less on the sophistication of technology itself and more on the competence of the people entrusted to use it.
