Dubai’s Government Getting Its e-groove On

Burj-Al-Arab Hotel

The Dubai government was definitely thinking, “Lets make this easier” when they created eGovernment ePay, an electronic payment system that enables payment of public utility fees and fines, using credit cards. As simple as this may seem, this effort will streamline the process. Already, it has generated Dhs 2.5 billion. In general, it’s usually an unpleasant experience taking time to go to a government facility to pay bills or fines and this clearly is a tool that people will regularly use.

The numbers prove the effectiveness of this system. In 2010, there was an increase of 65% of fees collected from 2009. “These results clearly indicate the favorable pace of eTransformation in Dubai and also reflect the increasing adoption of ePay as a preferred mode of payment to complete government transactions on one hand and the confidence shown by customers in the efficiency and safety of this option on the other.” Said Ahmed Bin Humaidan, who is the director general of Dubai eGovernment. This system was developed by DEG, which refers to the government’s use of communication technologies.

DEG has built a system that provides government services to citizens, visitors, and businesses to ease their time while dealing with the government. These services are used by people or businesses to pay customs, electric, water authority, and Dubai Municipality. This is a model that should be adopted by Muslim majority countries.

Muslim majority countries, in general, have a poor reputation in providing government services efficiently. Usually, it’s an ordeal to deal with something as simple as paying an electric bill. The positive points of this development are:

• Give people the tools they need to pay you. 
• Reduce their time dealing with you.
• Reduce your time dealing with them.
• Less overhead cost for you.
• More profit for you.

This is the most straightforward business plan there is, as the numbers have proved the effectiveness of this service. The infrastructure is there for many countries to implement this technology. Many systems online are built for online payments, all that is needed is to create your own portal and partner up with the one of the online payment companies, and your headaches will be minimized...for the moment.

-.elanthemag.com