o   Government needs to act as platforms for better citizen engagement

o   Forge partnerships with private sectors to bring better service to the public

o   Governments need to be agile to innovation

Dubai-UAE: More and more people are becoming accustomed to receiving a wide range of services promptly, on a daily basis. People’s perception and expectation for service have expanded tremendously with the advent of technological acceleration and innovation – a key reason why many governments around the world are shifting towards providing new platforms for citizen engagement, according to Tim O’Reilly, Founder and CEO of O’Reilly Media.

Tim O’Reilly’s comments came on the opening day of the fourth World Government Summit (WGS 2016). Speaking on “The Next Government Update”, O’ Reilly underlined the imperative need for governments to become platform for citizens.

He shed light on the world today that is driven by algorithms, big data, robotics and on-demand economy that brings a “cornucopia of innovation”. O’Reilly suggested that governments should partner up with private sectors to provide better and smarter public services to the people and meet the constantly changing world of technology. Since private sectors do not act in the best interest of the public, O’Reilly emphasized that governments should get involved in playing this crucial role. 

The CEO claimed that amidst the era of technological acceleration, people’s level of trust in government and their determination of government’s competency depends on the kind of information people can retrieve from the government and the technology that supports this public service. O’Reilly continued to point out that the UAE, despite the nation’s small size, has a well-established platform that creates a practical connection between the government and its people.

O’Reilly also addressed the issue of advanced technology that might challenge employment in the future. He stated that the role of the government is to identify the kind of work that needs to be done and deploy the right people to the tasks. He added, “Government will need to empower people and upscale people through technology, rather than getting rid of them.”

With the partnership of private sectors, Tim O’Reilly believes that governments could indeed be sufficiently agile to onboard new technology and regulate a system that works both on private and public sector.

The World Government Summit has attracted more than 3,000 personalities from over 125 countries, and 125 speakers in over 70 sessions. The attendees include VIPs and senior experts from the public and private sectors globally, ministers, decision makers, CEOs, innovators, officials, experts, entrepreneurs, academics, and university students. A number of initiatives, reports and studies are set to be launched during the summit and throughout the year. The summit runs from February 8 – 10, 2016 at the Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai.