The Salamanca council has deployed the Liferay DXP digital experiences platform to promote its open government and citizen participation strategy. It is a solution that has transformed the digital relationship with citizens and companies, achieving greater interaction and consolidating a closer, more efficient and intelligent administration model. In this context, the municipal chatbot “Vega” plays a central role in the modernization of the service.
The virtual assistant “Vega”, based on chatbot technology, already answers half of the queries on the 010 telephone line, managing more than 21,000 conversations in its first year. The success of the council’s digital modernization has driven strong traffic growth on its web portal, where the user experience is increasingly supported by chatbot capabilities to provide information immediately.
Fragmented digital ecosystem
The Salamanca City Council, aware of the need to modernize its administration and bring it closer to citizens, began a digital transformation strategy in 2015 that was consolidated in 2017 with the Electronic Administration Plan. As part of this plan, the council sought to resolve a fragmented digital ecosystem and offer a more efficient administration available 24/7, facilitating the management of procedures and promoting citizen participation. The incorporation of an advanced chatbot became a key piece to achieve this goal.
To materialize this vision, the City Council deployed Liferay DXP in the cloud in PaaS (Platform as a Service) mode. Liferay DXP provided the technological foundation for “Salamanca Technological and Functional Nucleus”, integrating advanced capabilities such as artificial intelligence, semantic search (on ElasticSearch) and content personalization. The technological partner Ayesa led the development, building a modern and citizen-centered ecosystem, in which the Vega chatbot is integrated transversally into the different digital services.
The resulting ecosystem is articulated around several strategic pillars. A new omnichannel digital experience has been designed, modern and accessible from any device, supported by an information architecture structured by themes and a search engine powered by AI to offer precise answers. In this model, the semantic chat ‘Vega’ stands out, a chatbot capable of understanding natural language and resolving doubts immediately and uninterrupted.
The City Council deployed Liferay DXP in the cloud in PaaS mode, integrating advanced AI capabilities, semantic search and content personalization
Procedures and digital services
This technological base has allowed the development of strategic axes of citizen-oriented services, such as ‘Salamanca Comunica’ for content management, ‘Salamanca Abierta’ to promote transparency and participation, and ‘SalamancaFunction’ to centralize procedures and digital services with personalized information. In all of them, the chatbot helps to speed up queries and improve accessibility.
“The implementation of Liferay DXP has been a fundamental milestone in our digital transformation strategy. We have managed to build a more solid and efficient digital bridge with our citizens and companies, making our vision of an open and participatory government a reality. Technology allows us to be more transparent, accessible and proactive, and the quantifiable impact, such as the growth of visits and the success of Vega, validates our commitment to innovation at the service of Salamanca,” explains Sergio Bravo Martín, Head of Service of the Department of Information and Communications Technologies of the Salamanca City Council.
The impact of this transformation is reflected in measurable and significant results. In just over a year, citizen interaction has skyrocketed, quadrupling visits to the web ecosystem from 500,000 to 2 million annually, with 300,000 unique users. This growth has been driven by mobile use, which represents more than 60% of accesses. The Vega chatbot has established itself as a key piece, managing around 21,000 conversations, a volume that is already equivalent to 50% of the 010 telephone service.
Efficiency has also been noted in the simplification of procedures – such as downloading the registration flyer in just three clicks – and in the relationship with the business community, where 75% of the administrative activity with legal entities is already carried out by electronic means.
Predictive AI strategies
This project lays the foundations for the future ‘Salamanca Smart City’. The City Council is already working on the implementation of advanced data analytics, IoT technology for urban management and predictive AI strategies to optimize public services, converting data into value and anticipating the needs of citizens.
Efficiency has also been noted in the simplification of procedures, such as downloading the registration flyer in just three clicks
“Liferay DXP is designed to respond to the unique needs of the public sector, offering freedom to choose infrastructure and guaranteeing data sovereignty, a critical aspect for any government entity. We provide tools that facilitate compliance with the most demanding security and privacy regulations, while our commitment to digital accessibility ensures that services reach all citizens. We help build a more open, efficient and humane administration,” says Beatriz Escobar, General Manager of Spain and Portugal at Liferay.
