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UN team in Bahrain for eGov lessons

Manama, January 26, 2014

In a first global initiative of its kind, the United Nations Department of Economics and Social Affairs (Undesa) will be organising a visit to the Kingdom for delegates representing over 15 states to benefit from Bahrain’s experience in eGovernment - on the grounds that Bahrain has successfully hosted the 2013 United Nations Public Service Forum last June.

The forum, held under the patronage of His Majesty King Hamad, was attended by over 700 participants representing 97 states. It was the first such event taking place in the Middle East making Bahrain the fourth country in the world to host the forum outside the UN premises in New York.

eGovernment Authority CEO Mohammed Ali Al Qaed said the visit was organized under the request of the Undesa which took responsibility of all related costs, noting that such decision confirmed the international community’s sense of confidence in Bahrain and its leading position.

He pointed out that the Undesa examined the final report of the UN Public Services Forum hosted by Bahrain, along with the recommendation findings which revealed that over 50 per cent of the delegates from across the globe agreed that they maximized their benefits from Bahrain’s experience in eGovernment and public service.

In this regard, Al Qaed took pride in Bahrain’s partnerships with the UN and expressed the country’s readiness in providing support for other states in terms of capacity-building activities and full development of their technological potentials.

Al Qaed confirmed that the advanced level in the field of public service and eGovernment attained by Bahrain was why the UN chose it as a case study to benefit from its experience.

Such level resulted of the wise leadership’s directives which aim to provide all facilities for the provision of services to citizens through the development of government performance and enhance transparency, in addition to the support and continuous follow-up by the Supreme Committee for Information and Communication Technology, chaired by His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Mubarak Al Khalifa, Deputy Prime Minister, said the top official.

He also stated that during last year’s United Nations Public Services Forum, an initiative was announced to set-up an information platform that transfers the GCC expertise to various countries across the globe, as well as enhance its ties with other international organizations.

Al Qaed further declared that the eGovernment will prepare a detailed report for submission to the UN about the visit of the participating delegates and their special impression of Bahrain’s experience.

"The extensive visit program of the delegation extends for a full-week, from January 26 until February 1, starts in the morning and continues until 5pm each day. It includes presentations and various field trips in order to study the experiences and successful initiatives of Bahrain in the field of information and communication technology, which received the UN's praise in numerous recently issued reports," said Al Qaed.

The CEO also assured that the program of the delegation visit involves the eGovernment Authority and several national ministries so as to gain access to initiatives and lead projects within the eGovernment and public service sectors.

Delegates will be provided with in-depth insights about the eGA’s experience; following the UN’s assertion in adopting highly commended, clear-cut and successful strategies - subsequent to the eGA’s exceptional performance within the UN statistics – being ranked 7th in the world in the field of eServices, said Al Qaed.

He further added that delegates will be briefed on various eGA channels and projects originating from the National eGovernment Strategy 2016; such as eServices, National Payment Aggregator, eGovernment portal, eGA channels, eKey System, Zajel Project, I-Seha (the National Health Information System), Tawasul (the National Suggestions and Complaints System), in addition to gaining access to the experience of the National Contact Centre, as well as eGA platforms that are deployed throughout the Kingdom.

The delegation will pay visits to many governmental entities such as Ministries of Health, Education, Industry and Commerce, Central Informatics Organization and Bahrain Investors Centre.

These visits have been organized by the eGA, in conjunction with Bahrain Information Technology Society, said Al Qaed.

The core focus of these visits is to sharing and exchange expertise, systems and projects (within the ICT sector) that are designed for individuals, investors and ICT infrastructure, he noted.

The program also comprise relevant social events which would familiarize delegates with Bahrain’s potentials in tourism and economic sectors, along with the milestones of the country’s modern revivalism and progress realized during the prosperous reign of His Majesty, he added.-TradeArabia News Service




Tags: Bahrain | UN | eGovernment |

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