Dubai first in world to go 100% paperless, UAE`s Crown Prince says more than USD 350 million saved

Dubai: Dubai has become the world's first government to turn 100 per cent paperless, the Emirate's Crown Prince, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, has announced, pointing at savings of 1.3 billion Dirham (USD 350 million) and 14-million-man hours.

All internal, external transactions and procedures in the Government of Dubai are now 100 per cent digital and managed from a comprehensive digital government services platform.

"The achievement of this target marks the beginning of a new stage in Dubai's journey to digitise life in all its aspects - a journey rooted in innovation, creativity, and a focus on the future," said Sheikh Hamdan in a statement on Saturday.

"This accomplishment also reinforces Dubai's status as a world-leading digital capital and its status as a role model in designing government operations and services that enhance customer happiness," he said.

The US, UK, Europe and Canada have expressed plans to digitise government operation on a larger scale, which encompass government procedures and citizen identifications. However, sceptics have argued its vulnerability to cyber-attacks.

The Dubai Crown Prince said the government plans to implement advanced strategies to create and enhance digital life in Dubai over the next five decades.

"The new phase of Dubai's digital journey will enable and empower future governments to meet the expectations of the residents of a thriving smart city and provide them with renewed opportunities for prosperity, sustainable development, and happiness," he said.

The Dubai Paperless Strategy was implemented in five consecutive phases, each of which enlisted a different group of the Dubai Government's entities.

By the end of the fifth phase, the strategy was fully implemented across all 45 government entities in the emirate. These entities provide more than 1,800 digital services and over 10,500 key transactions.

Collaboration and integration among participating entities enabled the automation of processes and services provided to customers, cutting paper consumption by more than 336 million papers, the statement added.

The strategy also helped save more than 1.3 billion Dirham (USD 350 million) and over 14-million-man hours across the Dubai Government.

The complete digital transformation in the Dubai Government will enrich the smart city experience for all residents, entirely removing the need for paper transactions and documents - be they handed out to customers or exchanged between employees across government entities.

Digitalisation will also help provide exceptional experiences for residents through the DubaiNow application, which allows access to more than 130 smart city services in 12 major categories, it added.