IfG.CC -
Institute for eGovernment

The Director- General of the General Department for Residence Affairs, Major-General Talal Marafie said the most important reason why the Ministry of Interior increased fees for services is the deficit in the state budget, reports Al-Qabas daily.

Marafie added the real cost of services provided by the department over more than 40 years are not commensurate with current charges most of which are regulatory, such as visits and temporary residence permits. He went on to say we are not against expatriates.

Finally, more than 3 million expatriates working in the private sector can renew their residency electronically, in a step towards the completion of technical services and the application of e-government, to eliminate the paperwork and reduce the congestion in the corridors of ministries reports Al Qabas

The Ministry of Interior, is preparing to launch a new system to renew the residencies of Article 18 for civil sector workers, in October, in order to serve more than 3 million expatriates in the country.

The Interior Ministry is considering granting visit visa to the first-degree relatives through the automated visa system (e-visa), reports Arab Times daily quoting security sources. The same sources said the first degree relatives include the parents, wife and children.

However, the sources said the e-visa system in future will be expanded within the efforts exerted by the Ministry of Interior to activate the e-government services and relieve the pressure on all government departments.

A series of government opinion polls aimed at improving services provided by ministries and agencies has resulted in a set of recommendations designed to enhance the quality of client-facing services. The proposals focus on advancing the mechanization of services such as electronic payments, streamlining procedures, improving the handling of complaints, developing electronic services, and reducing the documentation cycle for processing client transactions.

Under the patronage of His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah and in cooperation with the Central Agency for Information Technology (CAIT), the 6th E-Government Forum (EGOV6) kicked off on Tuesday under the motto ‘Managing Transformation Towards Digitalization’ in the Al-Baraka Ballroom of Crowne Plaza hotel. The forum focused on managing change during the digital transformation journey.

On the sidelines of the forum, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Anas Khaled Al-Saleh said raising the level of digital services in Kuwait is a big concern of the government, adding that the aim of upgrading electronic services is to confront corruption through e-services that remove the human element in the completion of any transaction.

An e-link was launched on Thursday connecting the Public Authority for Housing Welfare and Real Estate Registration Office.

The go-ahead was given by Minister of Justice and Awqaf and Islamic Affairs Yaqoub Al-Sanea, and Minister of State for Housing Affairs Yasser Abul.

Using electronic media in state ministries and offices will no doubt contribute effectively toward the eventual goal of the e-government, Minister Al-Sanea told reporters.

The Central Agency for Information Technology (CAIT) signed on Thursday a MoU with the Ministry of Education on using IT in educating students in schools.

The special IT network used by the Ministry of Education will be blended with the national IT network to boost the latter in serving the public with online information using the network's high speed capacity, said Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs and Chairman of (CAIT) Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah, in a press statement at the signing ceremony.

In a significant move towards digital transformation, the Ministry of Justice has launched a new service allowing citizens to pay civil fines through the “Sahel” application. The announcement was made by Dr. Muhammad Al-Wasmi, the Minister of Justice and Minister of Endowments and Islamic Affairs.

According to a statement on the Ministry’s official “X” account, this new service enables users to view their outstanding cases requiring payment of civil fines. Once the fines are paid in full, any transaction restrictions imposed due to these fines will be lifted.

Official spokesman of the housing authority Ibrahim Al-Nashi categorically denied a newspaper report that the South Saad Al-Abdullah project will be moved to another location. He stressed nothing about moving the project was presented to the Korean contractor. He said the housing authority continues the implementation of the project, which is considered as Kuwait’s first smart city. The environmentally-friendly city will be built through partnership between Kuwait and South Korea.

As the different public and private institutions are now providing their services through the internet and electronic media, and in order to go along with the modern technology and the large use of internet and electronic dealing, led PACI to do its role in verifying the ID of the users through the electronic signature project throughout the smart ID card,” said Director General of PACI Mosaed Al-Asousi yesterday. This project consists of two parts; the electronic certification and a secret number. “PACI will issue a certificate of electronic verification, which will be saved in the electronic chip of the smart ID.

His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah said on Sunday that digital transformation is a comprehensive change all state's bodies should assume.

This came during a speech delivered by Minister of Commerce and Industry, and Acting Minister of State for Youth Affairs Khaled Al-Roudhan, on behalf of His Highness the Prime Minister, at the opening of a forum on "transformation towards digitalization.

Kuwaiti lawyer Mohammad Al-Dallal explained during a seminar he held at the Gulf University for Science and Technology as part of Kuwait's first Social Media Forum, that the current authorities use a clause that mentions abuse 'via telephone or other communication tools'. It is on the last three words, 'other communication tools' that the authorities back up any lawsuits or complaints against cyber defamation, bullying, or fraud.

Zain, the leading telecommunications company in Kuwait, revealed today that it has applied the E-signature service to its employees in collaboration with the Public Authority for Civil Information. PACI officials were present at the company's main headquarters in Shuwaikh for a period of two weeks to ease the registration process.

With the latest implementation of the E-Signature project, Zain positions itself as the first private-sector company to launch the E-signature service within the organization. The latest collaboration comes in line with the Kuwaiti government's vision of enabling electronic governmental solutions.

Microsoft has discussed the potential of AI for government at the sixth E-Government Forum (EGOV) in Kuwait.

The company was platinum sponsor for the event which took place from 4-6th December in Kuwait City.

The official was speaking to KUNA on the sidelines of the 11th meeting of the team tasked with implementing the Arab communications and information strategy which kicked off here Tuesday with the participation of Kuwait and delegates from ten other Arab states.

We appreciate Ooredoo’s initiative to add value to the market and mix the present with the ancient past Al-Babtain: We are witnessing a revolution in providing the best innovations and solutions based on the latest smart applications

Ooredoo Communications, the first telecom company to provide innovative digital services in Kuwait, has announced the adoption of the old Souk Al Mubarakiya project to transform it into an innovative smart city that relies on and provides visitors with ICT services that meet the needs of current and future generations and improve the experience of their visit to the market.

In an ambitious stride towards sustainability and the enhancement of the community, Ooredoo Kuwait, the pioneering telecommunications provider, reinforces its standing in the tech and telecom landscape.

The company proudly developed its groundbreaking Smart poles as part of smart City solution at the iconic Souq Al-Mubarakiya, a central hub in Kuwait City.

This forward-thinking initiative not only promises to redefine the visitor experience but also aims to create a greener and more sustainable urban environment.

Al-Asousi was speaking at an awards ceremony hosted by PACI to give thanks to the application’s developers, researchers, partners and allies. The Kuwait Finder application has received numerous awards, such as the 3rd GCC e-government award in Dubai, for its unique characteristics that include, efficiency, easy usage and the availability of geographical information.

Emir of Kuwait H H Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah honoured Qatar’s official e-Government Portal (Hukoomi) and the smart phone application of the Ministry of Interior (Metrash 2) for winning the 2017 H H Sheikh Salem Al Ali Al Sabah Informatics Award in the “Government Sector” category.

The Minister of Transport and Communications H E Jassim Saif Ahmed Al Sulaiti and Director General of Public Security Staff Major General H E Saad bin Jassem Al Khulaifi received the awards at a ceremony organised at Bayan Palace in the capital Kuwait yesterday. The Minister of Transport and Communications expressed thanks and appreciation to the Emir of Kuwait for his patronage and continuing encouragement to the Award, as well as to H H Sheikh Salem Al Ali Al Sabah. The Minister also thanked organisers of the event for their efforts and successful organisation.

FireEye, Inc. (NASDAQ: FEYE), the leader in stopping today's advanced cyber-attacks, has announced that it will soon be hosting the first government focused Security Seminar in Kuwait in collaboration with the Central Agency for Information Technology. The Seminar will be organized by NoufEXPO.

Scheduled to be hosted at the auditorium of the Central Agency for Information Technology on the 18th of May, the event aims to shed light on the lesson learned from the slew of recent attacks and exchange best practices to help government entities in Kuwait reinforce security investments and strategies in an era of digitization and heightened connectivity.