Presented by Anna DiPalma
Author: Anna Di Palma
Abstract
This article explores the role of international organizations (IOs) in influencing domestic public sector digitalization reforms in the last two decades. While local-level studies have examined digitalization through the lens of municipal policy actors, this work fills a significant gap by focusing on the international dimension, particularly in the context of post-COVID-19 pressures for digitalization. Drawing on policy design theory and public digitalization literature, the article proposes a typology that categorizes orientations and degrees of influence IOs exert on domestic digitalization reforms. By analysing 139 official documents issued by UN, OECD and EU between 2000 and 2024, the study shows that IOs utilize a range of policy tools to promote specific understandings of public digitalizationwith varying levels of influence, depending on their political and legal mandate. It follows that conflicting views on domestic public digitalization in the international arena exert different pressure due to IOs’ financial power or institutional authority.This study contributes to a deeper understanding of how top-down policies shape domestic reforms, advocating for further national-level investigations into the actual effects of international public digitalization strategies.