Muscat: Oman improved its ranking in the Government Electronic and Mobile Services (GEMS) Maturity Index of UN, with Saudi Arabia coming first, followed by Qatar and the United Arab Emirates second with the same index value.
Oman score rose from 64 per cent to 69 per cent, achieving a growth rate of 7.8 per cent. Oman came in the fourth position, compared to the fifth position in 2021, through an improvement in its performance in two areas. First is the use of the service and user satisfaction from 46.35 per cent in 2021 to 58.08 per cent in 2022. On improving audience reach index, Oman's performance improved from 67.70 per cent in 2021, to 72.14 per cent in 2022.
Reliance on e-government services has generally increased in the Arab region compared to 2021, especially in educational and financial institutions, but more efforts must be exerted to digitise services in other sectors such as justice and tourism. These are the key findings of the Arab region’s fourth edition of the GEMS Index, issued annually by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) since 2019.
Eighteen Arab countries participated in this year’s index, which measures the maturity of government electronic and mobile services based on three criteria, namely service availability and development, service usage and user satisfaction, and government outreach efforts. The report also assesses results at the national and regional levels.
In this context, ESCWA GEMS project lead Nawar Al Awa stressed the need to promote the maturity of these services at the national level, even in high-assessment states, by keeping pace with the use of new digital technologies such as virtual reality. He also highlighted the importance of cooperation and shared experiences among countries in order to avoid duplication of effort, particularly since the report indicates that there is a widening gap between Arab countries, causing results to range between 1 per cent and 87 per cent.
In addition, the report highlights the role of digital government services in increasing efficiency, reducing waste and corruption, promoting transparency, providing accountability and achieving economic growth. It also mentions the key role of digital governments in promoting equality among citizens.
Al Awa emphasised that the expansion of digital government transformation could improve service provision and provide more opportunities for people to engage in all regions – including those in remote or disadvantaged areas – as they would have better access to services be it from home, through digital kiosks and other means.
“The impact of digital government transformation is not only limited to providing services, but also to achieving a number of sustainable development goals, such as enhancing digital knowledge, digital inclusion, innovation and enhancing the efficiency of institutions,” he added.
The report further highlights the necessity of campaigns to raise awareness about the importance of using e-government services, and making them accessible to everyone.
GEMS indicator aims to measure the maturity of government services provided through e-portals and mobile applications in the Arab region. It is a tool that enables decision and policy makers to monitor the digital transformation programmes, and it seeks to bridge the gap in most of the international indicators, related to service maturity, its use, user satisfaction and public outreach.
To this end, 84 government services have been identified, and it is necessary for each country to deliver them electronically for individuals and businesses. The principle of lifecycle has been adopted in service selection; any individual needs these services at different stages of life, and each company requires them since its establishment to its close. These services are updated annually in line with the evolving needs of individuals and institutions.
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