Technology In Focus, ICT Authority To Improve Govt. Efficiency

Dr Wayde Marr, president of the Vector Technology Institute

For many Jamaicans, renewal of one’s motor vehicle registration or certificate of fitness can take up to an hour or more, because of long lines at the offices of Tax Administration Jamaica. Depending on the hour, day or month, this experience can be time-consuming. However, according to information and communications technology (ICT) experts, the establishment of the ICT Authority will eliminate the long lines and help to ease doing business with government entities.

The ICT Authority will be a body, established by the ICT Act, to develop or drive a sustainable digital agenda in the government and wider society, thereby streamlining and consolidating the delivery and management of ICT services in all public bodies through a shared services model.

A bill to establish the ICT Authority was recently passed by the House of Representatives and is to be considered by the Senate for approval. It seeks to improve the use of technology and interoperability of systems and technologies across the government and to drive a sustainable digital agenda in the government and the wider society.

Read the full article online in The Gleaner