- The system will be called “payment reconciliation and settlement”
- The blockchain-based system will be used to process government payments especially the Dubai Police, Dubai Health Authority and Roads and Transport Authority.
- The pilot face has already processed over 5 million transactions.
Dubai’s Department of Finance has inaugurated a blockchain-based payment processing system for government entities. According to a report in the local Zawya news site, the platform was launched on Sunday, September 23, 2018, in partnership with Smart Dubai Office (SDO).
Government Offices to be the Focal Point
The platform, dubbed “Payment Reconciliation and Settlement,” will especially focus on government departments like the Dubai Police, Dubai Health Authority (DOA), the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) among others. Zawya further reported that the platform was intended at streamlining government process and creating a more accurate and transparent payment process that will enable real-time payments within and government departments.
The new system has already gone through the pilot phase and is already being used by the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) and the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) involving over 5 million transactions.
The Director-General of Smart Dubai Office Her Excellency Dr Aisha Bint Butti Bin Bishr, and several other dignitaries attended the launch. she said:
“Once again, Dubai was a pioneer in this sector and continues to make progress with the launch of the ‘Payment Reconciliation and Settlement’ System, […] the Strategy seeks to increase government efficiency by transferring 100% of government transactions to the Blockchain network.”
The Payment Reconciliation and Settlement System is a continuation of the ambitious Dubai Blockchain Strategy that was launched by the Crown prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Dubai Executive Council whose mandate includes introducing smart technologies to every aspect of life, otherwise known as the “Fourth Industrial Revolution.”
Aim to Provide a Smart Ecosystem
Commenting during the launch, the Director General of Smart Dubai Office Dr. Aisha Bin Bishr called blockchain “one of the most promising of [emerging] technologies.”
The government uses an archaic time-consuming process that takes up to 45 days. In the current system where staff has to physically peruse records of payments collected from different government portals before they can do reconciliations and settlement, deduct fees and transfer the balance to the relevant authorities.
The Smart Dubai Office’s Dubai Blockchain Strategy was granted top honors during the 2017 chapter of the Smart Cities Expo and World Congress in Barcelona, grabbing the City project Award from among 308 competitors.
The project is the brainchild of the Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of the Dubai Emirate Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid has won the support of the government, private sector, and institutional partners. The project intends to provide a smart ecosystem that enables seamless cooperation between the government, residents, and visitors.
