Chapter Six. Ministry Of Foreign Affairs Of The Slovak Republic

The strategic use of IT in support of the Ministry's operations was awarded meager attention by the senior political leadership during the first ten years of the Ministry's operation. And yet, IT has been used widely at headquarters and at Slovak missions abroad and numerous innovations were introduced. Effects of IT at Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic (MFASR) went hand in hand with the standardization and gradual institutionalization of administrative processes, structures and routines throughout the organization on a global scale, and more generally also hand in hand with the development and introduction of government-wide e-governance practices throughout the governmental administration in Bratislava. This chapter outlines the institutional characteristics of MFASR. This is followed by a description of its IT infrastructure. Effects of IT implementation and use are then discussed in relation to the core organizing principles of diplomacy.Keywords: IT infrastructure; Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic; principles of diplomacy