Government launches new user-friendly portal

THE government has launched its renewed Government Internet Portal, which the Finance Minister has said will contribute significantly to promoting the information society in Cyprus.

At the same time, however, said Minister Michalis Sarris, much more needs to be done in this direction, such as the use of electronic information in schools.

Talking at a news conference to present the new site, Sarris said the Portal “is directly related to the improvement of productivity and the quality of the public’s life, because it simplifies transactions with Public Service.”

“The basic new element is that it provides very easy and rapid access to available governmental information and services from one common point,” said Sarris, adding, “instead of involving people in adventures until they can reach what they want, there is one common point that directs them immediately with very simple instructions to find the information they need.

It is imperative for the Cypriot citizen to be prepared for the information society, Sarris said.

According to a Finance Ministry announcement, the Portal will act as the central point of access/entry (one stop, non stop) for all available governmental information and eServices, and its design is based on the Life Event Cycle philosophy, centring on the citizen.

This means it is based on the most significant points or chapters in a person’s life – birth, education, army, employment, marriage, family and retirement.

The public does not need to know which government service is responsible for each specific query; they can easily access any information on the easy-to-use website.

The information and electronic services that are provided have been organised in four different ways – by life cycle, by interest section, by electronic service and by ministry/ department/service – and visitors can locate the information they need by using various methods, depending on how much is known about the specific service.

n http://www.cyprus.gov.cy

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.