Samuel Nartey George, Minister of Communication, Digital Technology, and Innovations, has said that 16,000 government services will be transferred to the Ghana.gov platform in an attempt to modernize the provision of public services.
He clarified that in order to make government services accessible to enterprises and regular individuals, the ministry was working with the National Information Technology Agency (NITA) to completely re-engineer the platform.
“This upgraded portal will enhance transparency, convenience and reliability in accessing government services. We intend to put 16,000 government services on that platform,” he said.
This was disclosed by Mr. George at a press conference to inform the public of significant projects and advancements in the industry during the second quarter.
The online portal is currently a one-stop digital gateway for accessing public services in the nation, supporting between 1,500 and 2,000 services, such as payments, permits, registrations, and licenses.
The redesigned site, which will be launched in the fourth quarter following a public tender, will, according to Mr. George, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ningo-Prampam in the Greater Accra Region, offer much faster access, complete Ghana Card integration, and an easy-to-use interface that is streamlined for both individuals and businesses.
By cutting down on red tape and speeding up service delivery, the redesign will enhance citizen-state agency interactions and support the government’s digital transformation initiative.
Mr. George also spoke about two important topics pertaining to consumer rights and digital content. He denounced the proliferation of sexually explicit content on TikTok, calling it “against Ghanaian culture” and “completely unacceptable.”
He revealed that on June 26, the government contacted TikTok’s West Africa unit and asked them to establish in-country content monitoring by teams with local training.
In order to safeguard children, he also assigned the Cybersecurity Authority (CSA) the responsibility of monitoring and eliminating objectionable content and suggested a local content control architecture.
Following a critical meeting with MultiChoice Ghana and its South African leadership on Friday, July 4, the Ningo-Prampram politician promised the public that DStv subscription fees will be lowered.
According to him, the goal of the discussions was to make prices more sensitive to the economic circumstances of the nation and its people.
Speaking about the ongoing enforcement action against radio stations that are not in compliance, Mr. George disclosed that only 18 of the 62 stations that the National Communications Authority (NCA) has closed have gotten in touch with the regulator to start making amends for their infractions.
Less than ten days remain in the 30-day moratorium that the President has imposed on these stations as a sign of leniency for violations such as non-compliance with regulations, failure to renew licenses, and lack of tax clearance certificates.
The minister emphasized that the enforcement was intended to sanitize the broadcasting environment and had no political motivation.
Although he warned that those who did not take action would not be spared, he declared that the 18 stations that had acted in good faith would be given an additional 30-day extension to finish the compliance procedure.
Source: newsthemegh.com