The "e-applications" system, which is accessed at www.mepa.gov.mt, allows clients to view application details, submit and pay for applications online and send or receive correspondence digitally.
It also translates into savings in terms of time and resources, the authority said.
Described as one of the most sophisticated e-government services available anywhere in Europe, the IT and environment ministers present at yesterday's launch said it could serve as a blueprint for similar authorities in the EU.
Rural Affairs and Environment Minister George Pullicino said the system allows any architect registered with the authority - and not just the architect related to a particular application - to access the details of an application.
It also keeps an audit trail of who has accessed any application.
The implementation of the service was a giant stride towards more democracy in the way Mepa operated, he said. The initiative was in keeping with the direction the EU was promoting in favour of improved regulation by reducing the administrative burden that the citizen and the enterprise have to carry.
Mepa chairman Andrew Calleja said the system is impacting the authority in different ways, primarily in terms of cost efficiency and through the reduction of paper use and mail services. The reconciliation of fees received for applications has been drastically improved and human resources have therefore been redeployed more efficiently.
The system which, for security reasons, requires users to have an e-ID, offers different levels of accessibility and coverage. Applicants can have an online detailed status of their application and can opt to receive electronic communications, reducing waiting times, while architects have the full range of services at their disposal.
Availability of complete electronic data has reduced dependency on the physical file, with the result that the process is now more streamlined and a misplaced paper file is no longer an issue, Mr Calleja said.
IT Minister Austin Gatt said the new service was a testimony to the government's continued commitment to deliver added customer value when the public deals and transacts with it.
He described the service as the latest innovative link in a chain of services oriented towards the citizen's needs, with the government aiming to provide the public with one of the most sophisticated e-government services available anywhere in Europe.
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Fiona Galea Debono
Quelle/Source: Times of Malta, 10.01.2008
