IfG.CC -
Institute for eGovernment

Labour Minister and chairman Dr Majeed Al Alawi yesterday patronised the launch ceremony.

Chief executive officer Ali Ahmed Radhi and senior officials attended the ceremony at the LMRA headquarters in Sanabis.

“We are pleased to release the first issue of the official eNewsletter, which is a result of direct attention and direction of the Supreme Committee for Information Communications Technology, headed by H.E. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Mubarak Al Khalifa, Deputy Prime Minister Chairman of the Supreme Committee for ICT. The eNewsletter is intended to spread awareness on various eServices activities, news and to educate the public about every new achievement related to Stages of implementation of eGovernment's strategy” Mr. Mohammed Al Qaed, CEO of the eGovernemt Authority, said.

The e-centre is to be established by Bahrain's e-Government Authority under funding by the UN. In its capacity as a leader in the ICT field the authority will establish the Capacity Building Centre for Developing Arab Countries and Africa which will be a training and consultancy centre that will assist various countries based on their needs and requirements. The centre will serve as a 'one-stop shop' providing governments in the region with vital resource and development assistance.

The event, which will be held under the patronage of HE Sheikh Mohammad bin Mubarak Al Khalifa, Deputy Prime Minister and President of the Supreme Committee for Information and Communication Technology (SCICT), will run from the 25th to the 27th of May, 2009, at the Bahrain International Exhibition Center.

Launching the eServices Centers and the eKiosks come as part of the service delivery channels for the eGovernment, beside the other channels: eGovernment Portal, Mobile Gateway, and National Contact Center), where users can benefit from the eservices through the channels at anytime and anywhere.

The new service offers eRegisteration to the language programs provided by the Ministry through the Community Services Department and Continuous Education Department, and comes as part of its efforts to provide effective eGovernment services to all citizens.

The new eService is available around the clock on the eGovernment Portal, www.bahrain.bh, and comes as part of the Ministry of Health's continuous efforts in elevating the level of its services in line with the Bahrain Vision 2030.

The eService allows businessmen to apply for abnormal load permissions for trucks and other heavy vehicles online with ease and convenience, needing only to complete an electronic form which contains details such as the desired route and load and carrier details.

The new service comes as part of the eGovernment Authority (eGA) and Government entities' efforts to provide a fully integrated and modern eGovernment system in line with the strategies of the Bahrain Vision 2030.

The service was launched yesterday, as part of Bahrain's e-government programme, at a ceremony held at the Central Informatics Organisation (CIO), Isa Town.

It has been developed by the CIO, represented by the GIS (Geographical Information System) and the Addresses Directorate.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also announced the launch of its new electronic website at an event held under the patronage of Shaikh Mohammed bin Mubarak Al Khalifa, the Deputy Prime Minister and the Chairman of the Supreme Committee for Information and Communication Technology (SCICT).

She also stated that various accredited international scientific bodies confirm the existence of many definitions of e-government. In the year 2002, the United Nations defined e-government as 'the use of the Internet and the World Wide Web to provide broad information and government services to citizens.

The National Dataset Project (NDP) has been undertaken by the Central Informatics Organisation (CIO).

The project is part of a government programme to develop and implement a comprehensive e-government strategy.

Personal health files for patients will be accessible by doctors, thereby sparing them from having to duplicate information that has already been investigated, such as blood tests.

An agreement to enable the debit card payment facility has been signed between the Finance Ministry and Ahli United Bank, which will use the Benefit system offering an electronic network for financial transaction.

The company will provide a full range of integrated contact centre solutions on a local and regional level.

The partnership will also pave way towards launching the National Contact Centre, the fourth and final integrated government eService delivery channel, having previously launched the eGovernment National Portal (Bahrain.bh), Mobile Gateway, and Common Service Centres.

The multi-million dinar Government Data Security Project will involve the use of the most advanced technology to protect both the hardware and software from viruses.