…police clearances, house-lot applications among lot to go online

THE provision of key services to the citizenry by the government will receive a technological boost in 2019 as several major projects will see Internet connectivity reducing the reliance on manual inputs.

During her address to the National Assembly on Tuesday, Minister of Public Telecommunications Cathy Hughes noted that the APNU+AFC administration “fully understands “that using technology in government’s work can readily provide citizens with easy access to government services. To this end, she said in 2019 the ministry will deploy 25 online, fill-able forms which citizens and those in the diaspora can use to facilitate transactions with the government. ”This prevents them from having to go to government agencies and spend a lot of time just standing up waiting,” she said.

The forms will cover services such as business registrations, police clearances, sickness and benefits claims, house- lot application forms, job vacancy registrations, nursery and primary school applications and the passport application process as well as the registration of births, marriages and deaths.

Hughes said that several government agencies such as the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) “have taken up the charge” and encouraged the citizens to transact business online. This is the way of the Guyana to come,” Hughes said.

Hughes also noted that in 2019 the enhanced capacity of the E-governance network will see “tele-medicine” facilities being created in which “the most remote “ health centres across the country will benefit from Internet connectivity. She said the Ministry of Public Telecommunications is working very closely with the Ministry of Public Health on the venture and she pointed out that the project will improve the lives of many residents.

She said too that Internet connectivity will be installed at a number of other public agencies. “Very soon, all our regional and NDC offices, our fire stations, police stations will be connected, improving efficiency and security,” she added. Hughes also told parliamentarians that the establishment of 131 ICT hubs across the country has been a tremendous opportunity and a source of excitement. She said the expansion of government services have also benefited persons in areas where the hubs are located as she noted that extensive groundwork has been undertaken to ensure digital services are provided to the country.

She said that the electronic government concept embraced by the administration will see $2.9B being set aside in two major projects , the ICT Access for hinterland core and remote communities and the US$17M National Broadband Project.
“I would be the first to recognise that we have failed for decades to provide Internet connectivity to our hinterland and interior locations and communities and proper telecommunication services,” Hughes said.

To this end, she rebutted opposition MP Irfaan Ali’s remarks on Monday when he told the National Assembly that the government is engaged in wasteful spending. Hughes said she could not “get out of my head, the two billion Guyana dollars that his administration had spent on the failed fibre-optic cable “which she said was badly laid and [was] exposed to the elements. More so, she said the project dashed the hopes of providing better Internet and telecommunications services from the coastland to Lethem.

She said she was happy that the Opposition Leader, Bharrat Jagdeo recently acknowledged that the project was most unfortunate and she expressed hope that the country would find out why the money was “wasted”. Hughes told the National Assembly that the government is firm on its anti-corruption stance, with those in high positions being held accountable. She said that she is confident that the increasing use of technology will ensure transparency and accountability in the provision of government services.