Business Bureau, Gulf Today

As part of its ongoing efforts to strengthen cooperation with other federal entities to galvanise the UAE’s digital transformation, further improve federal government services and provide quality e-services, Ministry of Finance (MoF) recently held a panel discussion on the e-Dirham system, and a workshop on the new e-Refund System for federal entities during Gitex.

Saeed Rashid Al Yateem, Assistant Under Secretary of Resource and Budget Sector, highlighted the vital role played by the ministry in improving its financial services and procedures, in order to enhance quality, efficiency and information security.

He said: “The Ministry of Finance is always seeking solutions to optimise its procedures in order to provide services that match the highest standards of quality and transparency. This ensures speed and accuracy of transactions and improves customer satisfaction, which is in line with national efforts to achieve Sustainable Development Goals and underscores the UAE’s commitment to the prosperity and happiness of its communities.”

The workshop saw a presentation by the ministry team on the e-Refund System for service fees and transactions for federal entities, its importance, utility, and a user experience (UX) walkthrough. Also discussed were future steps to enhance the system by linking it with federal government entities’ operating systems, thus improving user experience. The customer journey will be crafted based on customers’ feedback, providing additional support to them through the new administrator portal that will enable them to easily manage customer accounts. The e-Revenue System is now more flexible for ministry auditors, and an additional layer of review will be added for reviewers, amounting to three stages of checks.

The e-Dirham team at MoF also held a panel discussion on the e-Dirham system - one of the vital projects of the Ministry of Finance and the latest digital payment system. A video introducing the system and its various features was showcased, while new developments as well as future updates aimed at improving user experience and providing the smart services were discussed.

The Ministry of Finance lays great importance to its annual participation at Gitex, as per the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. MoF is part of the federal government platform at GITEX and showcases its achievements, electronic and smart projects in technology and information security at the event.

Meanwhile, As part of its presence at Gitex Technology Week, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) recently organised a panel discussion on Mohammed Bin Rashid Innovation Fund (MBIRF) and the government-backed guarantees and accelerators which discussed how innovative companies can qualify for accelerated innovation funding through MBIRF, and reviewed the achievements of the most important projects that benefited from the Fund.

The panel discussion, which included representatives from the government and private sector, innovators and GITEX visitors, was aimed at directly surveying the public’s feedback in order to enhance MoF’s services and further improve customer satisfaction.

Saeed Rashid Al Yateem, Assistant Under Secretary of Resource and Budget Sector said: “The ministry participates in GITEX every year because it is an important platform, which allows us to assess the ministry’s various initiatives and innovations. It also enables us to present our services and digital solutions to the public, in order to get their feedback to offer services that meet their requirements. Overall, the ministry is focusing on technological solutions that support the government’s goal to transition to a knowledge- and innovation-based economy.”

Fatima Yousef Al Naqbi, CEO of Innovation at MoF, moderated the panel discussion, which was attended by Alex Collins and Fadi Omeira from the Mohammed bin Rashid Innovation Fund, innovators, and Gitex visitors. The panel discussed the Mohammed bin Rashid Innovation Fund and the important role it plays in supporting individuals and companies across the country. The panel also outlined the most important steps innovators and entrepreneurs must follow to secure the necessary services for their projects. Also discussed was the government-backed guarantees and accelerators, which provides several services to innovators around the world and is an important example of partnership between the public and private sectors, as well as global innovators.

The panel discussion also featured success stories of key projects such as Car Switch in the automotive business and Kinteract in the education sector. Both these companies received financial support from the Mohammed bin Rashid Innovation Fund.