Interoperability and security are two key topics on the EU eGovernment research agenda. They must be addressed keeping in mind that eGovernment systems will remain heterogeneous while local administrations remain in charge of their configuration and of the definition of their processes.

These four ingredients (interoperability, security, heterogeneity, distributed responsibility) create an explosive mixture, analogous to the state reached by computer programming in the nineteen-seventies. To address the complexity of the problem, a new way of thinking was needed, which became known as "Programming in the large". We believe that the take-up of e-Administration is needed to match the globalisation. And we also believe that this take-up requires both the new tools and the new mindset proposed by R4eGov, "e-Administration in the large".

Project key objectives are:
- To gather and elicit the requirements for e-Administration in the large, on basis of which a concrete interoperation of web service enabled legacy public sector applications will be achieved using collaborative workflows.
- To provide the tools and methods for an e-Administration in the large from a technical and sociological perspective.
- To provide the required security and privacy for an e-Administration in the large, defining the appropriate methods and tools for control, security and privacy at the collaborative workflow and application layer.

To reach these objectives, the project combines a vision supported by advanced European public administrations, top Research organisations, and industrial partners who are world leader in their domain.