The implementation of the program, also known as electronic government, is aimed at providing easier and more convenient ways for the government to interact with its customers.
The initiative will make it possible for customers to pay for services such as licences, fees and fines; make contact with government to, for instance, lodge complaints or give compliments and access information such as requirements for obtaining licences and certificates and information about events etcetera, all online.
The town meeting will take place at 7:30 p.m. at the Foster Pestaina Centre, and Minister of State for Finance Zhivargo Laing is expected to address attendees.
A similar meeting will also take place on Thursday, December 9 at the St. John the Baptist Church in marsh Harbour, Abaco at 7:00 p.m.
Seven services have been identified by the government to be brought onstream in 2011 based on their ease of online implementation and their level of service demand - application for new business licence, renewal of business licence, payment of real property tax, renewal of drivers licence, payment of fines (courts), vendor inquiry and service wide customer service.
Back in November, Minister Laing told parliamentarians that the e-government initiative is an important one for The Bahamas, as it will change the culture of doing business and providing public services.
"It will involve a substantial investment on our part but the gains will be significant. For this reason, we seek to have the fullest possible buy-in by our society," Laing said.
To implement the program, the government has engaged the assistance of Singapore, through its technology arm, IDA International, to recommend a way forward that will employ the best practices, and follow a model that would yield the most for the country's endeavour, Laing ex-plained.
Singapore is one of the world's leaders in delivering e-Government and over some 30 years, it has successfully used technology to improve the lives of its citizens, expand its economy, and made itself one of the best countries in the world in which to work and live, he continued.
"The Bahamas is seeking to do the same. In the long-term we would like to use technology to make The Bahamas the best place to work and live in the Caribbean," he said.
"We envision a Bahamas where technology is the driver in all sectors in our society: Tourism, education, financial services, government, health care, transportation, and commerce."
In the medium term, the government sees this initiative as the enabler of true public sector reform, he said, as it will provide a baseline for measuring government agencies' performance; introduce online customer service and encourage response; provide easy access to government service; clarify government processes; improve efficiency and transform the way the Government collects revenue.
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Autor(en)/Author(s): K. Nancoo-Russell
Quelle/Source: The Freeport News, 02.12.2010
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