Government ramps up digital services with new mobile app

The government works on two levels concerning the roll out of Digital Citizen, namely the upgrading of the government portal gov.cy and the introduction of an application for mobile devices containing official documents, Deputy Minister for Research, Innovation and Digital Policy Nicodemos Damianou has said.

Speaking on Wednesday after a meeting of the Council of Ministers, Damianou said the upgraded government portal will be available in June whereas the Digital Citizen app is expected in September of the same year. Furthermore, he said that the plan also features the use of digital identity card as well as a Digital Assistant utilising artificial intelligence.

Damianou briefed the Cabinet on the work concerning the Digital Citizen service, a horizontal priority set by the President of the Republic which affects all Ministries and Deputy Ministries.

“The two channels that we will utilise is the app, through which the citizen could hold in his mobile device official documents in digital form and the new government portal (gov.cy) which is at the design level and we aim to introduce it with the Ministries’ and Deputy Ministries’ central services in June,” the Deputy Minister said.

According to Damianou, the government portal will be upgraded along the lines of other government portals such as gov.uk and gov.gr.

With regard to the app, Damianou said it will initially enable citizens to possess its identity card, driver’s license and vehicle suitability certificate in digital form, while more documents will gradually become available.

The app will become available in September, he added.

Furthermore, Damianou said the Deputy Ministry is working on a Digital Assistant, utilising artificial intelligence with the roll out expected by the end of the year in the context of the government portal.

He said that Cyprus began a collaboration with the Greek government on the matter and announcement will be made soon.

A Digital Citizen application will be launched at the second half of this year, President Nikos Christodoulides said on Wednesday.

Addressing a meeting of his Cabinet, President Christodoulides asked all Ministers to cooperate with the relevant Deputy Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy on this matter.

Today one of the key issues we have before us at the Cabinet is a briefing by the Deputy Minister of Research to do with the Digital Citizen, the country's digital transformation," he said, adding that it is is a matter that he would like everyone to work on as much as possible.

"Digital transformation is a priority in order to combat bureaucracy and enhance our country's competitiveness," President Christodoulides stressed.

He explained that Digital Citizen is a platform which will offer citizens services twofold, through the internet and the gov.cy portal and through an application for mobile phones.

All Ministries should have websites and give the opportunity to people to do what they need digitally, he noted.

"In the second half of 2024 I believe we will be able to launch the application so that people can start using it," President Christodoulides said.