Utilizing other government agencies as peer comparisons, government performance goals frequently center on producing new revenues and reducing expenditures. The UAE government, on the other hand, has adopted a different strategy during the past few years, setting its eyes on providing services that would compete with the finest in the private sector and striving for the efficiency of a top bank and the customer-centricity of a five-star hotel.
Providing government services is difficult in many nations, including the United Arab Emirates, in large part because of demographics. A variety of ethnicities make up the population of the UAE, which is made up of around 88 percent of the frequently migrant nonlocals.
Because of this diversity and movement, the government must provide facilities that are on par with the greatest alternatives available globally and that are also simple to use and comprehend, even for newcomers.
In order to promote public happiness, the UAE government invested significantly in enhancing its services in light of these difficulties, modifications, and national goals. The introduction of electronic voting machines, the provision of a refillable debit card to expedite the payment of government fees, and the establishment of a government prize for the best technology-driven services were some of these initiatives. Leaders dismantled government silos, unified several organizations, and demanded collaboration from groups in order to make reforms swiftly and effectively. This article examines their initiatives in further detail.
Developing e-voting: A way to make it more convenient and inclusive
The Federal National Council of the UAE implemented e-voting in 2011 to boost civic engagement through making it easier and appealing to young people. The National Election Committee (NEC) set up voting locations around the nation in just two weeks that year, five months before election day. However, electronic voting machines were used to cast ballots rather than the conventional ways of completing out forms and putting them in ballot boxes.
Program managers used historical data and predicted turnout to determine the number of machines and support personnel required for each location. They then tested these forecasts through experimental projects. In final results, 13 voting stations were placed according to population density in each of the seven emirates, as opposed to 1 station in each emirate in 2006. Numerous staff members who had been trained by the NEC to assist voters at the stations had to be present in large enough numbers, and the physical sites had to be conducive to an efficient conduct of voting activities.
Encouraging creativity in app design through crowdsourcing
The government established the Best m-Government Award in 2013 to assist and promote ministries and to foster citizen engagement. Four categories of competitors receive the annual award: students enrolled in UAE universities, national, Arab, and international government agencies. Any mobile phone-based service delivery method used by the government is eligible, including automated text messages, online applications, and smartphone apps. The prize honors innovation in eight fields: tourism, economy and business, social affairs, health, education, the environment, and infrastructure and transportation. Additionally, a vital government service provided to third-party clients, including consumers and corporations, must be addressed by the solutions.
The winner of the student category receives a cash prize of 1 million UAE dirhams (approximately $300,000), as well as business assistance to commercialize the application, in an effort to promote innovative and creative thinking among students in particular. The second year of the award had 411 entries, up from 260 in the first year, representing an increase in participation of 58 percent. Government agencies from all around the emirates and overseas have been inspired by this competition to create apps that will enhance how citizens connect with their governments. Following were some of the second cycle’s winners:
- The Dubai Police created a solution that, among other services, enables residents to make payments on fines, report crimes and traffic accidents, and monitor the status of applications. This solution falls under the safety and security category. The Dubai Police said that within a year of its debut, its mobile website had amassed more than 1.3 million users, and its mobile app had been downloaded by more than 300,000. Within a week of the app’s November 2014 update, more than 3,000 people had downloaded it.
- The Drive Now Text Later campaign, developed by Khawarizmi International College students in collaboration with the Interior Ministry, aims to lessen the incidence of car accidents brought on by texting and driving. When the motion sensor senses acceleration and the app launches, the phone’s screen is locked.
- The Moscow city administration established Active Citizen in the international grouping of social issues. Through earning points that can be exchanged for free public services, the app motivates users to take surveys.
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Fostering a culture of excellence and raising the bar
The Star Rating Program, which employs private-sector criteria to assess the standard of delivery of services and private-sector methodologies to uncover problems, was implemented by government organizations in response to the call from UAE authorities to improve their public operations for residents. Once every two years, organizations throughout the UAE are assessed based on eight criteria: alignment with strategy, citizens, offerings, pathways, citizen experience, service effectiveness and creativity, people, and technology. The organizations receive a plaque displaying their categorization as well as an evaluation report that contains suggestions for raising the caliber of the services they provide.
It was simple to design such a system; the difficult part was getting approval from government agencies. The central government sponsored road shows, workshops, and advertisements for both the federal and local governments to attend in order to familiarize themselves with the new system in order to overcome initial objections. A few organizations offered to undertake pilot studies and rated themselves according to the evaluation. Finally, UAE leadership reaffirmed the significance of the initiative and the necessity of transparently and equally grading all services.