Manama, March 30 (BNA) The Chief Executive Officer of the Information and eGovernment Authority, Muhammad Ali Al-Qaed, participated in the World Government Summit 2022, which was held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE. and the Ruler of Dubai on March 29 and 30, on the sidelines of the end of Expo 2020 Dubai.
The leader headed the delegation of the Information and eGovernment Authority, which included the Executive Vice President of Electronic Transformation, Dr. Zakaria Ahmed Al Khaja, Hisham Al Hashemi, Director of Government Systems Support and Maintenance at the Authority, Abdullah Al Jowder, Director of Electronic Services and Channel Development, and Ahmed Ibrahim Al Arabi, Head of Strategic Planning. Ibrahim Youssef Al-Mahmoud, Head of Information Technology Policies and Standards.
They have participated in sessions and workshops on advanced infrastructure, ICT capabilities and skills building, among other topics. The Leader participated in the Arab Government Administration Forum entitled “Are we ready for the digital leap?” During which he highlighted the many factors that contributed to the successful digital transformation of the Kingdom of Bahrain, which benefits from a clear strategic vision, a set of policies and standards, as well as the support of the Kingdom’s senior leadership represented by His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. Khalifa and His Royal Highness, Crown Prince and Prime Minister Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa.
The Kingdom also provides a comprehensive framework for information technology governance and digital transformation through the Supreme Council for Information and Communication Technology, headed by Deputy Prime Minister His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Mubarak Al Khalifa. This contributed to the adoption of best practices and advanced policies for digital government services, as well as the development of government services. The customers’ experience is recognized and their suggestions, inquiries and comments directed to government agencies are implemented through various electronic channels whenever possible.
The Leader highlighted some of the Kingdom’s digital transformation successes during the pandemic, including the BeAware Bahrain application that is directly linked to all government systems involved. Artificial intelligence and big data were used to analyze the information of more than 500,000 infected people in the Kingdom to determine prevalence rates. This data was used to support the national medical team’s decision-making process.
Al-Qaed said that the Kingdom is automating judicial procedures and procedures, as more than 93% of the sector has been digitized. 100 percent of court hearing records have been converted from paper to digital. Annual settlement rates for cases have also improved. The leader said remote work and education operations that use cloud computing technologies have helped maintain business continuity for nearly 40,000 government employees, while ensuring that education continues uninterrupted.
Al-Qaed said that the investments of the information technology sector in the Kingdom are necessary to improve the quality of services and help advance the national economy, according to the Kingdom’s development plan. Bahrain also stresses the importance of adopting high levels of IT governance and encouraging research and development in all fields. Information technology also helps activate partnerships between the public and private sectors, as well as improve the work of higher education institutions.
Al-Qaed explained that the amount of time required to prepare the infrastructure for technical government projects has decreased by 60%, and that more than 30% of government agencies have moved to the government cloud. This is in addition to the establishment of four government agencies directly on cloud computing platforms. Moving more than 70% of government operations to the cloud helped reduce operating costs and time required for government projects by 60-80%.
Qaed said that institutions specialized in cybersecurity governance, represented by the National Cyber Security Center, have been established. Bahrain also has a strong personal data protection law and digital policies aimed at improving IT security.
He highlighted the role of the Bahrain Open Data Gateway, which provides data to investors in a range of sectors, including information technology. He said that Bahrain has entered into a partnership with the private sector to invest in further developing cloud computing capabilities. Rather than focusing on physical infrastructure, this frees up resources for the kingdom to improve skills and competencies, and make optimum use of resources.
Creating a digital culture was among the topics discussed in the session. Al-Qaed explained that the Bahraini society is young and highly connected, with the percentage of Internet use in Bahrain reaching 99.7% for individuals. This is thanks to the Kingdom’s long-term investments in digital technologies, as well as its focus on training and development.
AOQ