Ministry of Digital Economy and ITU Launch 3-Day GovStack Deep Dive Workshop
By Mariama Dem
The Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, in collaboration with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), has begun a three-day workshop aimed at enhancing digital service design in The Gambia.
The workshop, which commenced on Tuesday 20th February 2024, has brought together stakeholders from various government ministries, departments, the private sector, and civil society to discuss and explore the GovStack approach to digital service design and delivery in the country.
The GovStack framework, developed in partnership with the ITU, aims to improve the efficiency, security, and accessibility of digital services within government entities.
Dr. P.S Ramkumar, Chief Technical Officer of the GovStack Initiative at ITU, expressed gratitude to the ministry for the opportunity to share their expertise and knowledge with The Gambia. He highlighted the ITU’s efforts over the past year to evolve specifications and implementation strategies for e-governments, drawing from best practices and standards seen in other countries.
The workshop stems from a request made by the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy to the ITU BDT Director’s Office for assistance in various digital initiatives in The Gambia, including the development of a National Digital Address Database and Seed-funding for digital addressing rollout.
Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Communications & Digital Economy, Lamin Camara, emphasised the necessity of the GovStack Deep Dive workshop to brainstorm with Gambian stakeholders on digital ID and authentication, registries, geographical information systems, digital payments, and more.
As the world embraces digital transformation, PS Camara highlighted the importance of transformative solutions in public administration. He acknowledged the challenges faced in The Gambia’s digital landscape, including fragmented systems and a lack of interoperability, but expressed determination to address these issues in collaboration with ITU and the GovStack community.
The workshop aims to delve into technical intricacies, identify high-impact use cases, and chart a roadmap for implementation. PS Camara urged participants to leverage the workshop as a platform for co-creating a vision for a digital Gambia that caters to the needs of every citizen.
The GovStack Deep Dive workshop seeks to explore the technical specifications of priority building blocks for The Gambia, with the goal of unlocking a wide range of digital services to streamline processes, enhance access to government services, and drive economic growth and innovation.