UniversidaddeCádiz

Master’s Thesis on Digital Administration in Andalusian Educational Centres Receives Award for Its Contribution to Public Service Efficiency and Quality

A former student of the Master’s Degree in Public Management and Administration at the University of Cádiz (2024–2025 edition), Juan Blanco, has been awarded the Blas Infante Prize for Study and Research on Public Administration and Management, granted by the Andalusian Institute of Public Administration (IAAP), an agency under the Regional Ministry of Justice, Local Administration and Public Function of the Government of Andalusia.

The UCA alumnus received the award in the category “Transforming the Andalusian Administration from Within” for his Master’s Thesis (TFM), titled Digital Administration in the Management of Non-University Educational Centres in Andalusia: Current Situation and Proposals for Improvement, supervised by Professor María Isabel Rivas. The jury praised the project for its ability to drive significant improvements in the efficiency, responsiveness and quality of public services.

The evaluation committee was composed of the following members: Professors of Administrative Law Jesús Jordano (University of Seville), Carmen Núñez (University of Huelva) and Eduardo Gamero (Pablo de Olavide University); Professor of Financial Economics and Accounting Esteban Romero (University of Granada); Loredana Stan, director of the NovaGob Foundation; as well as José Loaiza, director of the IAAP, and Arturo Domínguez, Secretary-General for Public Administration, who served as the committee president.

In the 21st edition of the Blas Infante Awards, a total of 17 entries were submitted. Also recognised were Francisco Javier Sánchez Nocea, in the category “Andalusia in the Spotlight”, for his work The Role of Public Managers in the Regulatory Process: The Potion Maker?; and Susana Castillo, in the “Innovation in Public Administration” category, for her analysis Innovation in Good Governance and Public Integrity: Anti-Fraud Offices. Each category includes a commemorative plaque, publication of the awarded works, and a €5,000 prize.

Academic and Professional Background

With a degree in Journalism and a Master’s in European Studies from the University of Seville, Juan Blanco authored a previous thesis in 2013 entitled European Identity in Euronews: The ‘Off Voice’ of Europe. He later completed the Master’s in Public Management and Administration at the University of Cádiz, where he developed the now-awarded research project.

His career has been closely linked to institutional communication within European organisations such as the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (2016), the European Court of Auditors (2017–2019), the European Parliament (2019–2020), and the Ulysseus European University (2020–2021). Since May 2023, he has been a civil servant in the Auxiliary Administrative Corps of the Government of Andalusia, currently assigned to IES Mar de Cádiz in El Puerto de Santa María.

Since joining the public sector, he has promoted initiatives to improve administrative management, including his participation in the 2024 Knowledge Ambassadors Programme and the SéneQAs Community of Practice, which aim to increase the efficiency of administrative staff in non-compulsory education centres through the use of ICT tools.