mGovernment Magazine

Hamad Al Mansouri: TRA receives entries for the 2015 GCC

eGovernment Award

This award plays a pivotal role in the development of e-services at the GCC level

The Telecommunication Regulatory Au-

thority (TRA) called upon government en-

tities wishing to participate in the 4th GCC

eGovernment Award that will be held in

the Kingdom of Bahrain. All entries must

be submitted by 3 September, 2015.

The award, to be held during November,

comes as part of the GCC e-Government

Conference and Exhibition Award initia-

tive, one of key initiatives set out in the

GCC’s eGovernment guiding strategy.

The award, which is organized biannu-

ally, aims to honor government ministries,

entities, agencies and authorities that fol-

low international best practices in e-gov-

ernance. The award also aims to honor

those government entities that make a

sustained effort to achieve excellence in

the use of cutting-edge information and

communication technologies (ICT). The

honoring of the distinguished governmen-

tal entities also rests on their improving

of the quality of digital services offered in

the GCC and support of economic devel-

opmental initiatives through the building

of knowledge-based societies in each of

the member countries. The GCC e-Gov-

ernment Award also serves an important

and effective role in lifting the competitive

edge of e-Government services as it mo-

tivates all parties to offer innovative and

advanced solutions in all matters relating

to their respective fields of work.

“This award plays a pivotal role in the de-

velopment of e-services at the GCC level.

This was evident with the quality and scale

of the projects showcased during the last

session held in the United Arab Emirates.

We are well aware of the importance of

highlighting successful endeavors in the

field of e-Government and the benefits of

using information and communications

technology. These two work together as a

matrix that will have a tremendously posi-

tive effect on the e-readiness of govern-

ments in the region and can strengthen

coordination and cooperation between

GCC states,” said H.E. Hamad Obaid Al

Mansouri, TRA Director General.

“The Award’s previous session held in

the UAE coincided with the announce-

ment by His Highness Sheikh Moham-

med bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice-

President and Prime Minister and Ruler

of Dubai, about the beginning of the

transition towards smart government in

the UAE while this upcoming session

comes on the back of the announce-

ment of the results of this transforma-

tion at the UAE government level which

recorded over 96% with the provision

of 337 smart government service for

individuals and institutions. Being the

only entity in charge of selecting the

UAE candidates, the TRA spares no ef-

fort to raise the UAE government enti-

ties’ awareness on the importance of

this award by organizing special events

dedicated to introduce these entities

on various details and requirements of

participation and the evaluation crite-

ria which will familiarize them with the

award and increases their chances of

winning significantly,” H.E. added.

In order to achieve a remarkable and suc-

cessful participation for the UAE, the TRA

held a number of workshops and panel

discussions focusing on a number of im-

portant topics, including the introduction

of the award’s various categories and the

competing projects in each category from

each country.

The TRA also identified a clear mecha-

nism to enable widest participation of all

entities followed by selecting best proj-

ects according to clear criteria based on

transparency, efficiency and quality in

order to reflect the great progress and

development witnessed by the UAE ICT

sector in general and the e-services sec-

tor in particular.

The exciting developments are part of the

ongoing efforts of the GCC governments

to promote the e-services sector and

closely monitor the development work

in this field at a national level across the

Gulf. The e-Government conference also

serves as a platform through which ex-

perts in the field can exchange ideas and

expertise while showcasing new mecha-

nisms to enhance digital cooperation be-

tween the Gulf states. It also represents a

platform to elevate e-Government servic-

es to new heights that meet the public’s

needs. The lofty goals of the conference

will be addressed through numerous ses-

sions, panels and workshops which will

discuss the most pressing and relevant

issues in the field of e-Government and

ways to enhance future cooperation at the

GCC-level.

Report