Azerbaijan , Baku, May 24 /Trend/
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev signed a Decree on "Some measures on arrangement of application of e-service by the state agencies" on 23 May 2011. This decree has great importance both for the development of e-government and further strengthening of fighting corruption, Head of the Presidential Administration's Law Enforcement Bodies Work Department Fuad Alasgarov said in an interview with the media.
Alasgarov said at present e-service is widely applied in the international experience in order to achieve the improvement, simplification and making easy of the immediacy of the mutual relations between the state and society utilizing of the information and communication technologies.
E-service is also estimated as one of the effective means in prevention of corruption and ensuring the transparency, he said. E-service has great importance in increasing the efficiency and quality of the mutual relations between the state agencies and the citizens, ensuring the transparency, eradication of the factors conducive to corruption.
Alasgarov said the latest decree of Mr. President envisages the undertaking of additional measures in order to improve and speed up the application of e-service by the state agencies.
"First and foremost, this decree is to be assessed in the context of the measures for ensuring anticorruption and transparency. E-service minimizes the direct contact between the state agents and citizens and eradicates the factors conducive to corruption. In this regard, wide application of e-service will become one of the important measures in fighting corruption," he added.
In accordance with the decree within three months a special e-service section will operate on the websites of all the state agencies. The title of the service, the precise list of the documents required for rendering of the particular service and an electronic format of the application, blank and other documents to be filled in by the applicant will be stationed in the said section.
"Each person whishing to benefit from e-service will be able to enter the said section on the website of the relevant agency and send the application filled in the appropriate form, as well as the scanned copies of the required documents in electronic format. The applicant will immediately receive the confirmation of the receipt of the sent documents by the state agencies," Alasgarov said.
In rendering the service the state agencies may demand the original of the documents only in the case, when they cannot obtain the information about the said document from the electronic information resources, database of themselves or other state agencies.
He said there are "Entry-leave and registration" inter-agencies automatic information-search system, "State registry of the population of the Republic of Azerbaijan", "Single migration information system", "Search database for the natural persons on the tax register", "Address registry of the Republic of Azerbaijan" and other permanently updated databases. Each state agency will have direct access to these databases. The agency rendering the service will be able to obtain information about the relevant document sending the inquiry to the said database. If there is not any information in the single electronic databases about the required document, the original of the said document can be required from the applicants.
"There is another issue. The payment of some duties and other fees are envisaged for rendering of a number of services. The state agencies will undertake the relevant measures to ensure the payment of the said fees in an electronic way. As you know, the amounts of the fees for all services are indicated on the website "Rusum.az". Moreover, the information about the amount of the duties and other fees to be paid for the services will be stationed on the official website of each state agency," Alasgarov stressed.
He said the foreigners and the stateless persons will be able to use e-service alongside with the citizens of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
"E-signature is an important element in the implementation of e-service. The legislation envisages the application of e-signature. The works in this direction will be completed soon. This decree sets forth the instructions to the Communication and IT Ministry for mass application of e-signature," Alasgarov added.
"However, till the wide application of e-signature, the sending of the documents with e-signature in rendering of e-service by the state agencies will not be required. Simply, I would like to reiterate once again that sending of the application and other scanned required documents in electronic format by the applicants to the e-service section on the website of the state agency will be sufficient for rendering the service," he said.
Alasgarov said the decree also provides the establishment of a single electronic portal for implementation of all e-services in accordance with the "one stop" principle. The citizens will be able to enter e-service section of desired agency through that portal.
" To include into the list all types of services rendered by the state agencies in the fields of entrepreneurship and business, economics and trade, social protection and employment, education, science and health, law-enforcement bodies, migration, culture and tourism, youth and sports, transport, communication and other spheres, Mr. President instructed the Cabinet of Ministers to determine the types of services to be rendered by the state agencies within two months," he said.
"As an example, a number of types of the services can be rendered in an electronic way. For issuing a certificate on burden of the property, which is also called "Form No. 1", provided by the Immovable Property Registry of the State Committee on Property Issues, a copy of the ID card, extract from the registry on the ownership rights over the immovable property and other documents are required. These documents will be scanned and together with the application will be sent to the e-service section of the Registry and after appropriate inquiry the agents of the body will provide the applicant with the required document," Alasgarov added.
In the meantime, he said, the rendering of the services in an electronic way will be possible in other fields as well - recognition of the diplomas provided by the education establishments of the foreign countries, pensions, changing of ID cards, issuing of the schemes of the land spots, the activity of the notary, issuing of licenses and etc.
Alasgarov said the rendering of high quality e-service makes necessary to increase the knowledge of the state agents, civil servants in the field of information technologies. In this regard, the decree envisages the arrangement of trainings for the state agents to improve their skills in application of information technologies, he added.