Sri Lanka's Ministry of Telecommunication, Digital Infrastructure and Foreign Employment on Wednesday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Microsoft in Sri Lanka to provide effective citizen services.
Speaking at the signing of the MoU with Microsoft Sri Lanka Minister of Telecommunication, Digital Infrastructure and Foreign Employment, Harin Fernando said although it was long-overdue, this was a significant milestone for Sri Lanka to drive the country's digital transformation.
The Ministry of Health announces that a e-Health Card including a personal health record with an individual identification number will be given to each Sri Lankan citizen of the 21 million population by the year 2020.
Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne said that any person's health records will be included in the e-health card and it could be used to speed up patient care services.
Read more: E-health cards for all Sri Lankan citizens by 2020
Sri Lanka will get access to Indian digital expertise and infrastructure under a deal between the two countries covering electronic public services delivery like e-learning, tele-medicine and office work and linking universities in a high speed network.
The High Commission of India said the agreement to expand information technology cooperation was signed during a visit to the island by Ravi Shankar Prasad, Indian Minister of Law & Justice and Electronics & Information Technology.
Read more: Sri Lanka gets Indian expertise in telemedicine, e-learning
The e-Local Government system was launched today with the objective of making local government bodies efficient.
The facility implemented under the Ministry of Local Government and Provincial Councils and Ministry of Telecommunication and Digital Infrastructure as a joint effort enables the public to make all the payments to the local government bodies through Internet electronic cards.
Read more: Sri Lanka launches e-Government system for local governments
Sri Lanka has been issuing National Identity Cards (NICs) to its citizens for 45 years now, but the government’s recent push for an electronic version with biometrics is making privacy advocates uneasy about the extent of information the state wants in its database.
In February, the country’s Right to Information Act came into force, drawing praise for the government’s efforts to promote transparency. Six months later, the government presented to Parliament regulations for creating a central electronic database of citizens that officials with wide-ranging powers will be able to access.