His Excellency Shaikh Mohammed bin Mubarak, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the of Supreme Committee for Information and Communication Technology (SCICT) will present the eGovernment Excellence Awards at the opening ceremony of the Bahrain International eGovernment Forum 2009 on the 25th of May, 2009, according to Mr. Mohammed Ali Al Qaed, CEO of the eGovernment Authority (eGA) in Bahrain.
The awards will build upon the tremendous success of last year’s competition, also held under the patronage of H.E. Shaikh Mohammed bin Mubarak, which resulted in all GCC member states adopting the award themselves at local levels. The Kingdom of Bahrain has proposed the organization of these national competitions as a preliminary round in the first half of the year to qualify for the GCC-wide awards, to be held at a GCC Summit.
Bahrain had distributed copies of the competition’s standards which outline the implementation mechanisms and judging panel selection to all GCC countries, as well as coordinating and providing support to fellow GCC nations through several meetings and communications over the past 10 months.
“The eGovernment Excellence Awards aims to spread awareness about the important role eGovernment plays in Bahrain,” Mr. Al Qaed said, “as well as encouraging ministries and citizens alike to make use of the various eServices available to them. I also encourage the private sector to offer more pioneering technological initiatives which contribute towards making life easier and simpler.”
The eGovernment Excellence Awards is divided into 3 main award groups and 9 categories as follows: The Government Awards, which includes 5 categories (Best eContent Award, Best eService Award, Best eMature Award, Best eGovernment Project Award, Best eEconomy Award; the Business Awards, which includes 2 awards (Best ICT Solution Provider Award and Best eEconomy Award), and finally the Citizens Awards, which also includes 2 categories (Best eCitizen Award and Best eConcept Award).
The CEO of the eGovernment Authority also explained that a dedicated task force and judging committee comprised of local and international experts have been formed to oversee this year’s award, and directed all those interested in participating or knowing more about the competition to go to the official website of the eGovernment Excellence Awards, (www.egovawards.bh).
The deadline to receive nominations from the various ministries, companies, and individuals is April 30th, said Mr. Al Qaed. “79 nominations competed for last year’s award, which included entries from various government bodies and private sector organizations, as well as citizens representing those who completed electronic transactions or completed questionnaires via the eGovernment National Portal (www.bahrain.bh), and we look forward to exceeding that total in this year’s award.”
The winners will be announced during the Bahrain International eGovernment Forum 2009, to be held from the 25th to 27th of May under the patronage of H.E. Sh. Mohammed bin Mubarak, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the SCICT. The conference will include a large number of senior experts from GCC nations and around the world who will discuss various issues and trends in the field of eGovernance.
The Bahrain International eGovernment Forum 2009 is organized by the eGA in cooperation with the Bahrain Society of Engineers, the Bahrain Information Technology Society, and the Bahrain Internet Society and will feature a range of activities over the course of the event. The main exhibition, EGEX 2009, will see participation of a number of Government bodies in Bahrain together in the main eGovernment Authority display stand, as well as a large number of regional and international eGovernment regulatory authorities and ICT organizations. Two specialized workshops will also be held before the launch of the Forum.
About eGovernment Authority Bahrain
The eGovernment Authority (eGA) was established by Royal Decree 69 in August 2007. Reporting to the Cabinet, the eGA aims to coordinate and execute e-government initiatives in line with the strategies, plans, and programs set by the Supreme Council for Information Communication Technology (SCICT), headed by HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Mubarak Al Khalifa, Deputy Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Bahrain.
The eGA’s role entails everything from proposing overall policies and appropriate legislations to the SCICT for approval to overseeing the execution of the approved SCICT programs. This includes suggesting required IT programs, facilitating communications and services between all government entities, opening new e-channels for e-government services, and offering technical and knowledge-based support to the ministries and other government entities.
Currently, the eGA is working on executing the plans contained within Bahrain’s e-government strategy to achieve the ambitious Bahraini e-initiatives, as well as offering 200 basic governmental services electronically via various communication channels within 3 years to all citizens, residents, and businesses of Bahrain.
