Dialogos

Digital Citizen: Shadows in the Process, Questions About the Cost – What the Auditor General's Special Report Reveals

Published February 24, 2026, 09:01
Digital Citizen: Shadows in the Process, Questions About the Cost – What the Auditor General's Special Report Reveals

The Auditor General of the Republic of Cyprus has published a Special Report on the “Digital Citizen” project, raising questions about its transparency, legality and financial justification. The report examines the process of assignment, implementation and financial management of the application, which allows citizens to digitally store official documents with legal validity within Cyprus. The application was developed based on an intergovernmental agreement with Greece, through which it was assigned to the same private contractor who had developed the Greek gov.gr wallet, without an open competition in Cyprus. The Auditor General questions whether this process fully ensures the principles of transparency, equal treatment and fair competition. A significant finding is that work appears to have started before the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding and the Contract, while the legality check was completed a few days before the signing of the Contract, creating the impression of a predetermined course. The total cost of the project amounts to 1.7 million euros, without a detailed cost breakdown of individual activities. The Auditor General points out that there was no detailed cost estimate at the time of signing the Contract and that Cyprus did not obtain accurate information on the cost of developing the Greek project in order to assess a fair price. In addition, additional costs are recorded, which increase the total cost of the project, raising new questions about its financial viability.