The Pursuers of Happiness
There is no doubt that the m-Government
initiative launched by His Highness Sheikh
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE
Vice-President and Prime Minister and
Ruler of Dubai, represents a milestone in
government work in the UAE. The initia-
tive aims to utilize modern and advanced
technology innovations such as mobile
applications to complete customers’ trans-
actions and fulfill their needs easily and
conveniently. The ultimate goal is to make
customers happy.
The mobile apps released by ministries
and other federal and local government
bodies are used to achieve the objectives
of sustainable development. There is no
doubt that the government plays the big-
gest role in the smart transformation pro-
cess. Smart transformation has been a
primary and major requirement in the vi-
sion of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed
bin Rashid Al Maktoum that aspires that
people in the UAE can have 24/7 access
to all government services via their smart-
phones, because simply it is an innovative
and fast government that does not sleep.
Upon launching the initiative, respective
entities responded actively and promptly
by creating various apps that offer their
services. They were even competing to
have a presence in the annual contest
that has been held twice so far about in-
novative apps across various categories
and fields. The creative efforts by these
entities are only proof on our ability and
willingness to progress, lead, create and
innovate.
The Telecommunications Regulatory Au-
thority (TRA) has exerted tremendous ef-
forts to raise public awareness about all
the apps used in the m-Government. Part
of the efforts included launching the UAE
mGov app store, which is a simple plat-
form to promote apps from federal and lo-
cal agencies.
The store aims to achieve the vision of His
Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid
Al Maktoum aspiring to render smart and
mobile services part of everyday life for all
people of the UAE, with easy and conve-
nient accessibility. The smarter the servic-
es, the happier the people and the better
the society.
We are proud to say that the UAE govern-
ment app store was successful as soon
as it was unveiled in 2014, becoming
very popular among the public. It received
a 4-star ranking on Apple’s iTunes and
Google app stores.
With all this success, a number of ques-
tions should still be asked:
Have government apps been successfully
used or only successfully downloaded?
What is the added value from all these
government apps to individuals and orga-
nizations?
Do these government apps have a role in
addressing challenges until 2021?
These are valid questions, but before
answering them, we should still ask our-
selves the following:
What are the government apps that I need
to fulfill my needs in real-time?
Do I need to use government apps on an
ongoing basis so that they become in-
dispensable such as social media apps,
games, etc.?
What are some barriers that keep me from
taking advantage of government apps,
i.e.:
• I do not have a smartphone.
• I do not trust payment transactions via
phone.
• I do not have enough information or ex-
perience on how to use apps.
• The apps are complex.
• I cannot guarantee that my personal
data will reach the desired entity via the
app.
• I do not trust or do not favor all apps.
There is no doubt that answering these
questions should help us progress and
continue on the path to sustainable trans-
actions. After all, success brings success
and the future is to those innovators who
are pursuing happiness through work ef-
ficiency and innovation.
Amna Al-Badwawi
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