The agreement was signed on July 25 at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Ottawa, Canada.
The engagement was recently approved by the Cabinet to advance the establishment of the national communications and information technology framework. The project will, among other things, harmonize all current e-government initiatives, update the Government's e-government policy and assess a strategy for meeting short-term (one year), mid-term (three years) and long-term (five to 10 years) goals.
Mrs. Ruth Millar, Financial Secretary, who signed on behalf of The Bahamas Government, acknowledged Canada's pre-eminence in e-government services and welcomed the alliance as one that would greatly assist The Bahamas Government in meeting the primary challenge of ensuring that users of its government services, wherever they are located, have equal opportunities to satisfy their needs.
Mrs. Millar also noted that both countries share similarities based on the Westminster style of government.
The Canadian Government's Department of Consulting and Audit Canada (CAC), under the direction of Ram Narayan, will lead the project.
The CAC team visited The Bahamas in May of this year for a preliminary scoping mission, which involved dialogue with various public and private sector stakeholders.
Consulting and Audit Canada has provided similar consulting services to other countries around the world.
The introduction to CAC was facilitated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs through the offices of Philip Smith, The Bahamas' High Commissioner to Canada.
High Commissioner Smith, who attended the signing ceremony, said that Canada is a natural choice to seek electronic expertise.
Quelle: The Nassau Guardian , 04.08.2005
