Okaz

I congratulate the Saudi Ministry of Justice for winning the UN-sponsored technical excellence award at the World Summit on Information Society in Geneva. The ministry won the award following a global contest on best information and communication technologies initiatives. This was in recognition of the launch of a series of “paperless courts” in a number of parts of the Kingdom.

The system allows individuals to submit documents electronically and without the need to visit offices. This saves time and effort, and speeds up judicial processes. The Justice Ministry’s move comes in the context of the digital transformation enhancing e-government performance that is consistent with the Kingdom’s 2030 Vision. We hope that we will see a day when members of the public no longer need to visit government departments.

The award presented by the UN Secretary-General comes at the right time for the Justice Ministry that is being unfairly attacked by some. The Ministry of Justice followed the Ministry of Interior which led the way on digital development.

We now hope that this success will extend to the performance of public courts and that they will speed up cases and shorten waiting times and win the support of the public, something that is greater than any UN award.