The state is preparing to launch a central platform for managing and exposing interfaces – Camp. Testing is currently underway in a UAT environment, with production operation expected by the end of the year. The goal is to unify access to APIs, offer standardized processes, and simplify third-party onboarding.
What Camp will bring at launch
The platform is intended to cover hundreds of interfaces from the outset, as several ÚPVS modules have numerous APIs. It also includes transforming older services from SOAP to REST, which will simplify their use and integration. Technical documentation (e.g., according to OpenAPI) will be generated for the interfaces so consumers have a clear and uniform description.
At launch, connecting selected modules such as ÚPVS, Slovensko v mobile, MetaIS, and CSRU is planned. In the next phase, additional public administration organizations are expected to join. The platform team has already held dozens of meetings with authorities to prepare the connection in advance and speed it up after launch.
Why a central platform and how it will work
There is currently no obligation to publish APIs through Camp, but the advantages are unified management, ready-made processes, and less bureaucracy. The platform is connected to identity management and logging, and offers monitoring, auditing, and documentation in one place. For authorities and third parties alike, this means a more transparent approach and fewer disparate rules “at each one separately”.
Consumer application registration is always required and takes place via the information portal. The API owner (the statutory representative or an administrator authorized by them) approves applications and may require only acceptance of the general terms or additional steps, for example uploading a document. Integration processes are to be simplified – the system will use eID and, instead of KEP, acceptance of the terms should suffice.
Scaling, monitoring, and next steps
Camp is deployed redundantly, and its capacity can be increased by adding instances and licenses. Operations provide metrics per API and per consumer, so interface owners will see call volume and load. There is no billing directly in Camp yet, but the collected metrics will allow organizations to set up their own billing if they need it.
Some projects may keep their own API gateway for internal purposes, but when exposing interfaces to third parties, it is recommended to use the central platform. It covers processes, security, and oversight “out of the box” and simplifies integrations across authorities. It was also said that the considered “single sign-on” from the citizen’s point of view is not an accurate description of how it works – API access always involves application registration and clear permissions.
