‘Jordanians sent 1.5m text messages via e-gov’t service in 2014’

AMMAN — Jordanians sent almost 1.5 million SMSs to inquire about public services via the e-government programme since the beginning of this year, according to the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology. 

In 2013, Jordanians sent 2.1 million SMSs to inquire about public services, according to figures e-mailed to The Jordan Times. 

In 2012, they sent 1.083 million SMSs to ask about government services. 

The top five services Jordanians inquire about are the ranking of their applications at the Civil Service Bureau, traffic tickets, weather forecast, water bills and income tax, the ministry said. 

Meanwhile, government agencies sent 14.838 million messages since early 2014 to mobile users in the Kingdom to highlight services they provide or to raise awareness on certain issues, according to the ministry. 

Citizens can inquire about 40 services provided by 27 public agencies using text messages, according to the ICT Ministry.

They can obtain information by texting the code of a service or a specific keyword to 94444, and will receive the information they request via an SMS from the same short code.

Codes of services can be found at www.jordan.gov.jo.

Mobile users can also access the 40 services by downloading an application from the same website.

E-government services are provided by several public agencies, including the justice, interior and trade ministries, and the Borders and Residency Permits Department.

These services include allowing people to obtain security clearances and background check certificates, renew professional and commercial registrations at the Ministry of Industry and Trade, renew business licences, inquire about traffic tickets and check weather forecasts.

In 2006, the government formally inaugurated the e-government programme with the intention of streamlining bureaucracy and enhancing access to the Internet in rural areas.