The Interior Ministry has signed a contract to this effect with Axalto and its local sponsor International Trading Group, on the sidelines of the Milipol Qatar 2006 exhibition that concluded in Doha yesterday.
The project aims to issue high-end smart cards combining built-in biometrics features, contact and contact-less technologies.
The smart card, the size of a credit card, will serve as the official ID document for Qatari citizens above 16, as well as foreign residents, an official spokesman said.
In addition to the personal data available in the usual ID documents, the microprocessor will also store the person’s fingerprint.
The biometric data remains on the chip and never leaves the card even when the identity verification is being performed, respecting privacy of the cardholder, company officials said.
The cardholder can access e-government services and perform transaction in a simple and secure manner.
Using a smart card reader connected to their home computer, citizens could use their smart ID card to avail a number of services, including obtaining of civil records.
Moreover, the contact-less technology built in the card together with the match-on card capability allows this ID card to be used as a travel document, increasing speed, convenience and security of identity verification at border crossings, they said.
Col Saleh al-Kubaisi, head of the Computer Systems department at the Ministry of Interior said that worldwide concerns related to security, border control and financial criminality were prompting governments to fight identify theft attempts. "And Qatar is no exception," he said.
"But it is a strong will from our government to use a technology that can also improve our citizens’ life and contribute to the modernisation of our administration," he said.
"The smart card technology strikes us as the best means to meet all these needs".
Another contract to upgrade Qatari passports was inked with the De La Rue Identity Systems of the UK and its local sponsor Mannai Trading Company.
Quelle/Source: Gulf Times, 18.05.2006
