Dubai’s Vision
In April of 2000, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai Crown Prince and the UAE Defense Minister passed a decree on e-government which set a punishing schedule, giving departments and ministries just 2 to 3 weeks to assess business processes and develop ideas, a further 6 to 8 weeks to design pilots, and just four months to get pilots up and running. The final goal: e-government in Dubai by October 2001 needless to say, the project has been launched under the umbrella site of www.dubai.ae as scheduled.

Codenamed e-government@dubai.com, the project is designed to drive through an improvement in service quality, reduce time and cost and banish tedious internal administrative routines. In a no-nonsense message to public servants, Sheikh Mohammed said that any department head should be capable of implementing the new initiative, and warned: “Anyone who fails to do so will be kicked out.” He added: “This project is a must if you want to continue with me in government.” He said it is critical for governments to re-invent themselves, and the re-invention of government has to happen if we want Dubai to become a leading business hub in the New Economy. He stressed that he wanted public services to be made available at offices and homes so that people need not approach the departments, stand in queues and waste their time. This initiative involves applying for any sort of transactions such as driving licenses, identity cards, e-purchasing, work permits, visas, trade licenses, etc., through the Internet. It also contributes to paperless archiving and information sharing. Government employees will be able to communicate with each other and share information electronically. Departments and ministries are currently integrating their systems closely to facilitate information sharing in order to achieve the key goal of Dubai’s e-government drive of creating a single view of the individual which can be shared between government agencies.

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UAE Government Services Online
The Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce provides its services electronically to finance and business sectors in Abu Dhabi through its Abu Dhabi Electronic Services project. All services associated with commercial licensing are provided online. The website is accessible at: www.abudhabi-online.gov.ae

The Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) also offers e-government services via its website. E-services are on offer to over 60,000 members, and include the issuance of certificates of origin, legal and arbitration services, commercial directory information, booking of chamber facilities, viewing and updating membership profiles. The website is accessible at: www.dcci.gov.ae

A fully automated, bilingual portal (www.dubaided.gov.ae) launched by the Dubai Department of Economic Development allows one to access the following services, quickly and easily:

• Licenses: Issuance, Renewal, Modification, Cancellation and Inquiry
• Commercial Permits: Issuance, Renewal, Modification and Cancellation
• Trade Name Reservations
• Commercial Protection
• Fines and Violations – Inquiry and Payment
• Suggestions & Complaints
• Rules and Regulations
• General and Economic Information

The Dubai Naturalization and Residency Department (DNRD) offers a web-based visa processing system for the public and private sector to process visas in one hour. Visa applications can be turned around the same day, and up to 3,000 visas can be approved a day. The starting point is the DNRD website which is accessible at http://eform.dnrd.gov.ae, where tourist, residence and work visa applications can be filled in online, in both English and Arabic. At the time of publication, the service was not open to individuals. The service comes with a premium of AED100 per visa, over the regular fees. Once all the details are filled in online, a printout is made by the applicant and this has to be signed or stamped by the sponsor. Payments can also be made online. The system also provides for uploading the required documents by scanning them. The applicant should then take the signed printout to the department and the employee there will simply scan the bar code on the application into the computer, and the visa will be ready.

Dubai Ports Authority (DPA) offers online services to the shipping community. The DPA’s Internet strategy has been directed by the requirements of customers and the nature of their business needs in the electronic age. The portal named “MyDPA”, is the first of its kind in the region and accessible at www.mydpa.co.ae, offers services to DPA registered customers that will boost commercial viability and enhance relations with customers based on DPA’s increased expertise in Internet projects.

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) launched a major new e-initiative providing a package of facilities online to enable customers to get quick, effective and easy service. By going to the website www.dewa.gov.ae, the consumer, whether an individual or corporate/government, can securely enroll with Dewa by providing the account number listed on the electric meter in his building and choosing a password and user name. Besides paying bills by credit card or bank direct debit order, users can view the history of all their transactions over the past 12 months on the Internet. They can download receipts displayed online after the payment of bills, which will also be emailed to them, as will a copy of their monthly bill. Fine payment and re-connection services are also available online. Consumers shifting houses or offices can also activate their new electricity and water connection over the Internet and pay their security deposit over the Internet. Once the customer’s identity is verified through the scanned tenancy contract and passport photocopy which is attached to his online application, the connection will be activated. Other facilities are also available for landlords and their representatives, connectors, consultants and suppliers.

A number of Free Zone authorities in the UAE have also set up elaborate websites offering a choice of services and online registration to the public. These include the Ajman Free Zone (www.ajmanfreezone.com), the Fujairah Free Zone (www.fujairahfreezone.com), and the Ras Al Khaimah Free Trade Zone (www.rakiftz.com).

Besides the above-mentioned many other UAE Government sites can be accessed at: http://www.emirates.net.ae/portal.html

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