Kuwait Govt Online portal: The ‘Google of Kuwait’
‘The Google of Kuwait’ Kuwait ranked 49 in 2014 Government Development Index. More than 1,600 services provided currently. System provides back up for state department in event of system crash. Era of carrying piles of official documents to end.
Kuwait continues progressing in its endeavor to improve efficiency and effectiveness of management performance and reducing errors arising from conventional methods in the work of government departments. In this regard, Kuwait established the Central Agency for Information Technology (CAIT) in 2006 by an Amiri decree, and in 2014, the agency was founded under the Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Sheikh Mohammad Al-Abdullah AlMubarak Al-Sabah.
In global e-government rankings, Kuwait is among the Asian nations in the conceptual framework of the E-Government Development Index (EGDI). The state was ranked 49 in 2014, up from 63 two years earlier, a difference of 14 points in this short period. CAIT created a common network to securely unify public agencies and non-governmental organizations called the Kuwait Information Network (KIN). It is an infrastructure of servers that seeks to better the speed and privacy of messaging between authorities.
Emergency plan
“There is an emergency plan between official departments in the event of a failure or a system crash. They can use our system as it serves as a backup. Also, the civil services department operates as a backup of our agency. Every now and then, the maintenance team hacks into the system to find out how can we deal with intrusions,” said Majeda Al-Naqeeb, Deputy Director General and Assistant Undersecretary of the National Project Sector.
“The Kuwait Government Online portal is a platform that serves three sectors - commercial, citizens and residents, and visitors of Kuwait. In 2012, we used to offer 400 services. Presently, there are more than 1,600 services ranging from e-transactions to providing information,” Naqeeb told Kuwait Times. At the request of Saudi Arabia, CAIT linked the Gulf states through an information network for greater electronic messaging flexibility.
“It is not easy to shift from using old routine methods to ride the wave of evolution. The community and staff at government entities have to accept joining the race in order to keep pace with international technological development by training. There is a misconception in saying that activating online services means that people will be sitting at home. The portal enables users to carry out the largest possible number of transactions under its umbrella because it is easy to use and saves time and effort. Notwithstanding, our success is coupled with the extent of cooperation by other official bodies in providing links and latest data updates,” stated Naqeeb.
Separate services
Some services are completely separate, such as the Ministry of Interior and the Public Authority for Civil Information. The e-gov portal redirects users to their websites. Meanwhile, some government sectors allow direct operations through the portal. “Visitors can now avail of all transactions and services provided by the Kuwait Credit Bank right from our website, pay their water and electricity bills and obtain commercial licenses in collaboration with the Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI). We hope the Interior Ministry lets us offer more convenience to citizens by allowing electronic visa applications through the e-gov portal, but it is going to take some time,” Naqeeb explained.
“You can call the Kuwait Government Online portal as the Google of Kuwait. Besides services, you can find general info about the country, tourist destinations, cultural and heritage information and statistical data, in addition to the latest laws and legislation updates in both English and Arabic,” said Naqeeb. “Behind this great effort stand our finest young Kuwaiti men and women who work at the central agency, as we do not rely on companies in dealing with data and web design. Furthermore, we provide technical consulting and budget studies in the field of information technology, and encourage people of different ages to gain experience through our annual IT training programs.”
From 2017, the era of porters carrying stacked piles of official documents will end, as Cabinet decision 412 to use the G2G messaging system will be applied in all governmental sectors. Naqeeb noted that 16 government entities have already started to refuse accepting any official papers by hand.