The winners of the Best M-Government Service Award, which recognises excellence in government service, were honoured at the closing ceremony of the third Government Summit 2015 yesterday (February 11) in Dubai, UAE.

Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, who gave away the awards said the strong participation in the Award this year across all the categories, highlights the clear success of the UAE Government in providing a global platform to showcase the best smart government services that are in line with future demand.

He said that the Best Mobile Government Service award, now in its second year, underlines the commitment of the UAE to consolidate its leading international position in innovation and creativity, as well as in the adoption of best practices in providing outstanding government services, and improving the performance of future governments.

In the tourism sector, Dubai Culture and Arts, the Ministry of Tourism in Saudi Arabia and the "i-Tour Seoul" application from South Korea, won the award in the local, regional and international categories, respectively.

In the security and safety sector, the mobile application of Dubai Police, ‘Shield,’ an app by Lebanese army, and ‘Safe Stepping Stone’ won the honours in the three categories.

The mobile application presented by The Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, won the local level award in Education sector. At the Arab level, the award went to the application by the Saudi Ministry of Education, while HKDSE won for its App at the international level.

In the social affairs sector, the winners in the three categories of local, regional and international, respectively are: General Women's Union in Abu Dhabi for its ‘Productive Families Shop’ application; ‘Formal Donations’ app from Oman and ‘Active Citizen’ app from Russia.

‘Darb,’ the smart phone application by Abu Dhabi Transport department received the local level award, while Bahrain smart government won at the Arab level for its ‘mTickets’ app and Luxembourg won in the international category.

In the environment sector, Dewa’s smart phone app, ‘I Qatar e-Nature’ from Qatar and ‘MyENV’ from Singapore were the three winners, while in the healthcare sector the winners are: UAE Ministry of Health; ‘Qaryebon’ app by the National Committee to Promote Mental Health in Saudi Arabia, and ‘My QuitBuddy’ application of the National Health Commission in Australia.

In the economy and trade sector, the award went to Ministry of Justice at the local level, the General Authority for Consumer Protection in Oman at Arab level, and ‘Hong Kong Trade’ application by the Trade & Business Development Council in Hong Kong at the international level.

From over 411 submissions, only 76 entries were qualified for the final phase of the 2nd Best M-Government Service Awards 2015. Over 181 entries were from UAE universities and government entities, of which 96 were entries by students representing 20 universities, highlighting their strong interest in the awards nation-wide.

Of the 230 entries from outside the UAE, 80 were from Arab countries with Saudi Arabia at 30, Oman with 14, Qatar with 12, Bahrain with 11 and Kuwait with six. Two entries each were received from Jordan, Lebanon and Morocco and one entry from Sudan.

Of the 150 international entries, 30 per cent were from European Union countries and 22 per cent from the US, while the rest were from South Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, Russia and other countries.

The jury evaluated the entries on the basis of level of efficiency, effectiveness, lesser number of steps needed to avail of the service, lower cost and increase in percentage of customer satisfaction. The experienced and competent jury members chose mobile applications that reflect best practices in delivering smart, simple and comprehensive services. – TradeArabia News Service