Nowadays ICT has a significant role in public administration by creating opportunities to automate a lot of manual operations. ICT plays an important role both in improving customer service in public administrations as well as internal and inter-institutional co-operation processes in public administrations that promote access to services and service quality, facilitate administrative processes for citizens and businesses and contribute to the accessibility of information. Public authority daily faces a major challenge – on the one hand to reduce labour costs and on the other hand to introduce innovations. In the implementation of both these objectives public administrations deal with a serious problem – to operate in a connected environment by involving stakeholders and at the same time to solve problems by using new working methods, tools and management models. One of the strategic objectives of tax and customs administrations is to increase resource use efficiency and effectiveness; therefore, they continuously search solutions to simplify administrative procedures, to improve and develop the quality of services provided and the business environment in general, and how to automate internal work processes and significantly reduce manual workload. This study aims to examine the structure affecting the efficiency indicators, to point out the factors which have the biggest impact on increasing effectiveness of institutions.

Latvia has essential territorial differences in socio-economic development. Therefore the task of the state is to realise such regional policy which decreases unfavourable territorial differences, facilitates balanced territorial development and increases the life quality of the inhabitants. The regions deserving special support have an important role in the implementation of regional policy. The state support from the specially established Regional Fund is mainly being given to the enterprises which are located in the regions deserving special support, sometimes - to local governments. Up to now the state support was more frequently given to the peasant farms and individual enterprises and occasionally to the stock companies, local governments etc. In the period from 1998 to 2000, interest payments for specific credits compile 82% from the usage of the Regional Fund. The directions of the application of the Regional Fund are not wide at present and they should be diversified.