Coimbra, Portugal, July 13, 2026 (Lusa) - The Portuguese deputy minister for State Reform, Gonçalo Matias, said on Monday in Coimbra that the target of 100% digital services will be brought forward to 2029, as it is considered an achievable goal.
“We had set the target for 2030, but with hard work we will be able to bring it forward by a few months and achieve 100% digital services,” Gonçalo Matias told journalists.
The minister announced bringing forward the deadline to the end of the government’s mandate during his speech at the opening of the Citizen’s Centre at the Portuguese Institute of Oncology (IPO) in Coimbra, an event attended by the minister of health, Ana Paula Martins, the president of the IPO in Coimbra, Margarida Ornelas, as well as the Mayor of Coimbra, Ana Abrunhosa, and the President of the Agency for State Technological Reform (ARTE), Manuel Dias.
“It is an achievable goal. Other European countries have already achieved it,” he emphasised.
Gonçalo Matias argued that the digitisation of services “is very important, because it also brings a more human touch”, citing the facility inaugurated today at the IPO in Coimbra as an example.
“It is only because we have digital services that we have been able to open a Citizen’s Centre at the IPO in Coimbra, which will enable people – many of whom are ill or vulnerable – to deal with their affairs with the State without having to travel,” he explained.
By the end of the year, he added, the Government aims to make 1,200 Citizen’s Centres available across the country.
The minister went on to say that the Government is finalising the Interoperability Act, which “will be a fundamental piece of legislation”, enabling “public services to cross-reference information and allow information to flow freely”, thereby preventing citizens from having to visit multiple services.
“The main objective of this digitalisation effort, and of interoperability, is to ensure that we speak with one voice. There is only one State”, he said.
In her speech, the minister of health, Ana Paula Martins, stated that the opening of the Citizen Centre at the IPO in Coimbra is “a different way” of serving citizens.
“Everything the State can do to simplify people’s lives ceases to be an administrative detail and becomes a concrete response to their needs”, she argued.
Digital transformation “only makes sense when it brings services closer to people, reduces inequalities and ensures that no one is left behind”.
“Citizen Centres are an excellent example of this transformation carried out with a human touch, where technological innovation is combined with personalised service whilst, at the same time, promoting inclusion and digital literacy,” she said.
The minister also highlighted the Coimbra IPO’s journey over six decades, recognised both in Portugal and across Europe, noting that it is also “one of the institutions currently undergoing one of the largest investment cycles in its history”.
“The refurbishment of the Surgery and Imaging building, together with the complementary work necessary to ensure the continuity of patient care, represents an investment of over €40 million, largely financed by European funds, in addition to a further €33 million in investment supported by the PRR [Recovery and Resilience Plan] to strengthen the institute’s much-needed technological capacity”, she said.
According to her, the Coimbra IPO, even during the construction period, continued “to increase its patient care activity” and now boasts “some of the best national indicators for patient access and response times”.
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