IfG.CC - The Potsdam eGovernment Competence Center

PC penetration in the Arab world is poised to record a rapid increase within the next few years, with many of the countries crossing penetration levels of 20 per cent. This augurs well for the various e-governance projects launched by the different governments in the Arab countries, according to Salem Al Shair, Director eServices, Dubai eGovernment. Al Shair was delivering the keynote address at the recently held "Regional Workshop on e-Government" organized by the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) in association with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, Yemen, at Technology City, Sana'a. The workshop was under the auspices of the Prime Minister of Yemen, His Excellency Abdelkader BaJamal, who is also the Chairman of the ICT Executive Committee.

"Market research findings indicate that the growth in PC penetration and the spread of the Internet are going hand in hand in Arab countries. Though PC penetration in some Arab countries is low compared to the more developed countries, the past few years have shown high levels of energy and dynamism among government circles to implement e-government initiatives," said Al Shair

"The next five years are going to be critical in the implementation of e-government programmes across the region."

Recounting the Dubai eGovernment experience, Al Shair said: "Backed by a time-bound program to migrate more than 70 per cent public services to electronic channels and a 30 per cent PC penetration in the UAE, Dubai eGovernment has succeeded in keeping to its target. In just three years, we have successfully managed to create a proper environment and infrastructure to deliver customer-focused eServices over innovative channels, including mobile devices. Dubai's vision to emerge as the front-runner in e-governance and Knowledge Economy was translated into reality through extensive planning, deployment of best of breed technologies and involvement of all key government departments. The result is that the Dubai eGovernment portal currently delivers over 600 eServices."

Quelle: MENAFN, 07.12.2003