Web Sites of the Gulf Cooperation Council and Egovernment Website - Research Paper Example

? A comparison between the number of Web sites of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and its services and e-government website in order to know the country and the needs of the Country Website development, optimization and preference By Author Date Name Table of Contents 1- A detailed Comparison 4 1- National Overview 4 2- Government Overview 5 3- Administration Overview 5 4- National Roadmap 6 5- Social Network 6 6- Tourist Links 7 7- Local Nationals Support 8 8- Business Links 9 9- Educational Support 10 10- Social Links 10 If we see the web site of Bahrain and Oman, they are also offering the mobile portal. In this way, this web site can be accessed and services can be used using mobile. In the same way, the Hukoomi should as well offer this service. As a result, this web site will become more user-friendly. 11 11- Government Links 11 12- Local Parameters 12 13- Website Search Engine 12 14- Media Center 13 15- Events 13 16- Government authorities and agencies 14 17- Feedback 15 18- The Ruling Family (Historical overview) 16 19- Language Support 16 References 28 Introduction It is an admitted fact that the internet is a most excellent and a progressively more vital source of information distribution. However, in order to distribute information on the internet, an interface is used, which is known as a Web site. A Web site contains a lot of hyperlinks and contents conveying the message of that particular Web site (Norton, 2001; Shelly et al., 2005). For instance, a web site of a university contains information about that university. In the same way, the Hukoomi is a Web Portal, which offers the people access to information regarding the State of Qatar. It links us with government programs, services, initiatives and events (Government of Qatar, 2012). In addition, through cooperation with government organizations and public service suppliers, the Hukoomi has appeared to build online information more readily accessible at our fingertips. Additionally, the online national web portal hosts a number of significant e-services, and government service application, documents, forms and general information (Government of Qatar, 2012). This report presents a detailed comparison between a number of Web sites of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and their services and other e-government websites to know the country and the needs of the Country Website development and optimization and preference. This report will present a detailed analysis of a wide variety of aspects of the Hukoomi in comparison with rest of the Gulf States in terms of electronic services and e-government support. The basic purpose of this comparison is to determine the needs and requirements that are necessary to know for building an effective and informative web site. This analysis will determine what should be included in the web site to make it perfect, with the intention that it could better serve its community. A detailed Comparison This section presents a detailed comparison between different web sites. For this purpose, I have divided this comparison into different parts (depending on the features of a web site). In this scenario, I will compare different features and services which are available or should be available at Hukoomi but it is not there and what services are available on other portals. 1- National Overview The first feature or support that we will analyze in this comparison is about presentation of national overview. In this scenario, the Hukoomi offers a good national overview; however, at this web site comprehensive national overview is missing. The national overview of Hukoomi can include information regarding national resources, population, geography and tourism. On the other hand, the Main Page of existing website does not contain such details. As this web site is aimed at presenting a detailed overview of the country so it needs to offer a brief but comprehensive overview of the State of Qatar. In this scenario, we need to add some links in a small portion of the Main Page of the website so that people could know about the nation in a much better way. Moreover, other Gulf web sites contain information in Arabic that is the native language of these countries. So the State of Qatar must develop its web site by keeping this point in mind. Thus, the Hukoomi should contain the links and contents in Arabic and that format should be set as default. When a user opens the site it should appear like the site of Bahrain (in Arabic) so that any person from the Bahrain could better understand the functionality of its web sites. 2- Government Overview The current look of the Hukoomi lacks the details of the governmental aspects. The web page does not offer a detailed overview of the present government. Here we need to present the government overview. The main pages of the Hukoomi are not offering a great deal of overview of the State of Qatar present governmental aspects. Moreover, it needs to offer more details so that a visitor can better know about the national operational and governmental aspects. This portal should also show the government structure of Qatar, as well as how government works and who are prime minister and president. All the information should appear on the Main page in small boxes. 3- Administration Overview The Hukoomi is also missing national administrative overview. In this scenario, the State of Qatar national administrative overview should contain national administration like political, judicial or monastery based aspects of a nation. In any national website, there must be following national administrative aspects like: The Prime Minister The Supreme Council The Federal National Council The Cabinet Federal Entities Local Entities Government Officials E-Government Director By offering such aspects, we can better assess the national working and operational aspects. In case of the Hukoomi, such information will offer an excellent overview of the State of Qatar management and administrative overview. 4- National Roadmap The Hukoomi does not contain the national roadmap covering the overall national policies and future developments. The national roadmap offers an insight of the overall national policies and aspects that need to be followed and assessed for determining the expected national growth. In this scenario, the Hukoomi must give a national roadmap. This will offer a better overview of the latest national policies and plans that national administration will settle in the future. 5- Social Network One of the most important uses of a web site is to build and maintain a close relationship with its visitors. In this scenario, the Hukoomi offers a social network based support for connecting people to the national community. Here, we can see Facebook, Twitter and YouTube based communities. However, the national website should also offer some connectivity, like Linked-In, to other professional communities. In this way, the national professionals will be able to attain access to the national talent pool and become a part of such community. The overall connectivity to national social network exists on the website and offers a suitable connection to national community as compared to other national websites of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). 6- Tourist Links In the past few years, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations have turned out to be a brilliant source of entertainment for tourists. The State of the Qatar is one of those favorite tourists’ destinations. However, the Hukoomi offers an excellent support for the international tourists. As compared to other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations, the present structure of the Hukoomi does not offer much information; however, the overall information for international travelers is enough. In addition, the main page of the website should contain the images of the country. These images should be of beautiful places so that they could attract their viewers. The given below connectivity links are offering worldwide connections and relationship building: View Visa Status Tourist Visa Check the Weather Joint Tourist Visa In order to attract more tourists, the Hukoomi must contain some links which could be used by the other people to know more about the country. In this scenario, the Hukoomi should have a picture gallery which contains a lot of picture of the country. The gallery should provide picture along with details (i.e. location, name of the tower or building and where is located). It will attract more people and they will inquire. It will be easier for the people to decide for travelling. 7- Local Nationals Support The websites of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations are offering wonderful services and information for their local nationals regarding a number of tasks. There are numerous links and services that are available online to better serve the people of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. For instance, the website of the UAE is offering an excellent support regarding national services. It contains a number of links of services that can be attained by sitting at home. In this way they can better manage the national services and offer a great deal of support to their nationals. On the other hand, the Hukoomi also contains a lot of information and services for their people. The website is offering services that are currently automated. These services are: Renew Health Card Pay Utility Bill Traffic Violations Renew Passport Only the above given services are available at the Hukoomi. Other web sites, for instance, those of Kuwait or Oman, offer the links of “search for law”; they allow the people to know about the laws which exist in the country. What is the penalty for the crime? And what laws are applicable? It offers a detailed overview of the laws. The Hukoomi should add this link under the services “For citizen and residents”. 8- Business Links The State of Qatar is one of the major oil producing nations and a big sea destination. The overall business and economic links are the main source of attraction for the businesses that are interested in investing into oil industry. However, this website offers only few links those are: Exit Permit Work Visa Issue Residence Permit Submit Labor Recruitment Application If we visit the web sites of Oman and UAE, they provide an excellent support for the people who want to start a new business. On the other hand, the Hukoomi contains only some of the major links as given above. Though these links are important, but a person who is going to start a new business wants to know about the environment of the country, and what business laws exist in the country. If a person wants to open a franchise, then the question arises from where he would need to get permission for it? There should be a link under business services where people can see business environment or business opportunities in the Qatar. It should also attract the investors from the other countries. 9- Educational Support The Hukoomi contains a few links for the educational sector such as: Apply to Qatar University Employment and Recruitment Digital Islamic Library Though these links are useful, they are not enough. Let’s take an example of the web site of Saudi Arabia. At this web site, we can see a link which takes toward educational services. This link provides a lot of details regarding admissions into different institutes of Saudi Arabia. This link provides a complete list of institutes where admissions are opening. It covers all the kinds of institutes like that training institute or a university. It provides complete guidance regarding admission to an institute. On the other hand, the Hukoomi has only 3 links as shown above. Here, students who want to take admission into a college are not able to take any idea. It does not provide in depth information. In this scenario, the Hukoomi should add more links under the Education services. It should explain the types of education in the Qatar and criteria of different universities and colleges. It should also contain a list and details of the universities and colleges in the Qatar. 10- Social Links The Hukoomi offers a comprehensive list of links and processes that are presently automated at national level. These links are really useful for local nationals and society. As compared to websites of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations, this website is offering only some of the most important links; however, still these links are enough for presenting and facilitating the local nationals. It offers an excellent support for the national people, regarding better handling and management of daily life tasks by sitting at home. Here, families can have a great deal of support for following main operations: Application for New Passport Apply for Qatari Exit Permit New ID Card Pay Zaka If we see the web site of Bahrain and Oman, they are also offering the mobile portal. In this way, this web site can be accessed and services can be used using mobile. In the same way, the Hukoomi should as well offer this service. As a result, this web site will become more user-friendly. 11- Government Links The Hukoomi contains a small number of links and communication arrangements for the general public or government. These links do not offer enough support as compared to support offered by the websites of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations. In addition, the Hukoomi is offering comprehensive communication links to the government official for communicating to national operations. This website is offering less support for national administrative links. For instance, like other web sites, the Hukoomi should add the services like immigration process, working conditions in Qatar, expenses of living in Qatar and so on. It will be very helpful for the outside people. 12- Local Parameters The Hukoomi also deals with a lot of local parameters. These parameters are local weather, time and temperature. Here, we can also view the national map with local tags. It offers an excellent support to view local aspects and parameters. This is really useful for local nationals and international community who wants to know the local weather and other aspects (UsabilityNet, 2006; Aimee Truchard, 1998). 13- Website Search Engine At the present, we see that the web site possesses huge data and finding the desired information is a challenging task. However, if a search engine is embedded into the web site it can be easier for the people to access the desired information quickly. The Hukoomi has the search engine services. This search engine offers a great deal of capability to manage the search results in the website for discovering some specific item inside the website. This search engine facility is able to offer a great deal of support for searching items and anything necessary for the national aspects. The other websites of Gulf Cooperation Council nations are also offering similar capabilities for searching preferred items and data on the website. Though it offers a search service, it does not allow us to customize our research. For instance, if we look at the web sites of the Kuwait and the UAE, we can see they offer an option of advanced search. It helps the users to define their preferences before they search. On the other hand, the Hukoomi offers only a box in which we can enter only a single option. We don’t have any other choice. 14- Media Center The Hukoomi media center involves the latest News and Press Releases. This facility of the media center presents instant access to national issues and aspects. Hence, anybody who visits the web site can know what is happening and what initiative has been taken by the State of Qatar regarding a specific situation. On the other hand, this service exists in several websites of Gulf Cooperation Council nations, however, missing in few web based portals. In this regard, the Hukoomi media center support is somewhat better than the other websites. But if we see other web sites like Kuwait, we can observe service named as “Kuwait Newspapers”. It offers a complete list of newspapers available in the Kuwait. So, the Hukoomi should as well offer this service. 15- Events The facility of events at the Hukoomi website offers a great deal of support and capability to access the information regarding national events. We have very scanty information about fetching events. We have the facility to fetch event by selecting the event type and its time line. Through this, we are able to fetch a wide variety of events’ types for a number of dates. This offers a comprehensive capability to observe and assess events according to our preferred needs and requirements. This is, indeed, a very smart service that is mostly missing at the number of website of Gulf Cooperation Council nations. 16- Government authorities and agencies The Hukoomi offers a great deal of information and details regarding the Government authorities and agencies. It offers in-depth information about the national working and operational structure. This national information and detail presents a greater capability to assess the national working and management structure. Here we can also explore the Government authorities and agencies by clicking it. This feature is very impotent for a national website. In this scenario, the Hukoomi is offering compatible services similar to other Gulf Cooperation Council nation’s websites. I have outline below concerning the national Government authorities and agencies structure. At the national website, we can click each ministry and attain in-depth knowledge of national Government authorities and agencies structure: Ministry of Business and Trade Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage Ministry of Defence Ministry of Economy and Finance Ministry of Endowment and Islamic Affairs Ministry of Energy and Industry Ministry of Environment Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ministry of Interior Ministry of Justice Ministry of Labor Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning Ministry of Social Affairs Although there is a lot of detail available on the web site, when we open a link of any web site, we don’t see a large link to go back to the web site. All the other web sites have a link “Home”, which allows the users quickly jump to the home page. 17- Feedback The Hukoomi also gives an opportunity for its users to freely express their thoughts and ideas. It allows the people to send their feedback to the national officials. In this scenario, the Hukoomi presents a number of ways and methods to present our feedback to national website officials. The feedback can be offered using following contact numbers: Local Contact 109 International +974 44069999 Live Chat But this is general information. If we visit other Gulf web sites, they have given a proper link “Contact Us”. When we click on this link, it gives all the contact details and phone numbers of that country. In this way, all the things are available only under one link. On the other hand, the Hukoomi has given different links such as feedback or chat or international number etc. It should come under the link of Contact Us and all the details should be mentioned there. 18- The Ruling Family (Historical overview) The Hukoomi website also offers a comprehensive overview of the ruling family of the state of Qatar. This web site presents a brief introduction of the ruling family, such as “the Al-Thani family is the royal family of Qatar. His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani is the Emir. As head of state, he is as well the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Qatar, and symbolizes the State internally and externally and in all international relations” (Government of Qatar, 2012). There is complete information about the members of ruling family. We can assess their awards, contributions and support for the national welfare. This is a great facility that offers comprehensive information about the national issues and aspects of the ruling family. 19- Language Support The Arabic is the native language of all the Gulf countries. So, the majority of Gulf web sites convey their messages using Arabic. In this scenario, the Hukoomi is very flexible for a number of users. Here we are able to have comprehensive language support for national and international viewers. Through this support, we are able to access both English and Arabic version of website. However, it could be further improved if the front end of this web site is built on the basis of the Arabic language. And if any user wants to see its English version, he should click on the English language link and open the English version of the web site. The web site of the Bahrain is a good example of this format. So the Government of Bahrain is offering an excellent support for their people. However, they also have an English version of the web site which can be accessed through Arabic version. Comparative Analysis The table given below outlines the list of services offered by different web sites. The table gives an overview of the service that is available at one web site but does not exist at others. The services provided Establishing service provision individually is explored through projected network, including well aided levels of better integration of services. The internet provides important resource factor which is based on combination of critical resources aided by technological frameworks. Therefore, while the critical illustration is composed of newer trends including e-service derivative, notable inclusion of standards and techniques are required and are thought to be perfectly required to help establish adequate distribution of notable system requirements. The development of standardized techniques requires e-service systems and within this framework, this model encompasses adequate service delivery platform. Re-categorization platform Service Categorization Hukooni Qatar UAE Kuwait Oman Bahrain KSA Business More services for Business Airport Entry Permit Business marketing Terminating a Business e-tendering system  Complaints to CMA    Apply for Approval of Foreign Investment in Industrial Sector e-payment Doing Business with Government Pre-Employment Health Check-up Appointment online Inquiry   Exit Permit Apply for Passing Permission e-business establishment Managing a Business Taxes and Fees  Issuance of custom exemption (extension)    Work Visa Apply for QCCI Membership Changing business portal Export, Import and International Trade Title Deed  Verifying commercial registry on a security basis    Issue Residence Permit Aviation Weather Services Business e-membership Starting a Business Trademark  Add Business Travel Agencies Information    Submit Labor Recruitment Application Bus Services No Industries Utilities  Add a New Sub Applicant    Cancel Legal Representation Law ceritifcation process Investing in Oman  Agricultural funds and donations    Certificate of Origin Consumer management portal Terminating a Business  An application form for electronically reserving a Trade Name    Commercial Registration Consumer development process  An application form for issuing an online industrial license for a year    Consumer Complaints Change factor communication  An application form to electronically issue a Commercial register    Customs and Ports  An application form to get an investment license    Document Authentications  An application to purchase a competition    E-Tendering  Animals project license (cows, sheep, ostriches)    Exit Permits  Application for a license for well digging    Family Visa  Application for renting a site for fishery investment and license a fishery project    Commercial Registration  Application of Data Update for Vendors    Consumer Complaints  Application to Purchase a Tender    Customs and Ports  Apply for a new calling    Document Authentications  Apply for an investment loan in Yanbu    E-Tendering  Approval on chemical materials to be used in the factory production    Exit Permits Family Visa File Human Rights Complaint File Workplace Health and Safety Report Fire Prevention and Safety Procedures Industrial Development and License Industrial Project Labor Recruitment Land and Properties Municipal Services Personal documents Real Estate and Property Recruit Foreign Labor Smart Card Citizens and Residents Renew Health Card Camping Permit Residency and Passports Services Pay Utility Bill Check Weather Social and General Life Traffic Violations Consumer Complaints Home and Housing Services Renew Passport Contribute to Qatar Museums Health & Sports Customs Clearance Single Window Culture & Entertainment Document Authentications Transport & Travel Driving license services Employment & Education Families Apply for New Passport Apply for permission to set up a long-term camp in the desert Family development portal Family network Apply for Qatari Exit Permit Connect to Electricity and Water Family connection e-family activation New ID Card Activate electricity and water supplies to your premise Family learning e-family treatment Pay Zakat Consumer Complaints e-communications e-Education and e-Libraries Exit Permits Family Visa ID Card Islamic Services Medical Services Municipal Services Museum Services Passport Red Crescent Funds Renew Health Card Social Welfare Job seekers /students Apply to Qatar University Business Visa Job e-communications Digital Islamic Library E-Tendering e-job development Academic Guidance Qatar National e-Learning Portal Register students in independent schools Residence Permits Business Visa e-Tendering Qatar National e-Learning Portal Residence Permits Visitors Tourist Visa Customs Clearance Single Window Apply for an eVisa Essential Services Government employees Check Weather Customs Clearance Single Window Events and missions Getting Around in Oman Municipalities Affairs Joint Tourist Visa Customs Clearance Single Window Travels Planning Your Trip Embassies and missions View Visa Status Customs Clearance Single Window Activities in Oman Tracking of Postal Packages Customs Clearance Single Window About Oman Sanitary Connections Customs Clearance Single Window Essential Services Customs Clearance Single Window E-Service Forms Archive Customs Clearance Single Window eGovernment Initiative Customs Clearance Single Window Oman eGovernment Architecture Framework HM’s Award for Excellence in E-Service E-Payment Gateway Electronic Transactions Law Information Security Online Charity Electronic Tendering E-Governance Framework eParticipation Policy of Oman Portal e-Inclusion eOman Brand philosophy ICT Sector Statistics eOman Strategy E-Service Forms Archive eGovernment Initiative Conclusion It is an admitted fact that the internet is a most excellent and a progressively more vital source of information distribution. In order to distribute information on internet, an interface is used, which is known as a Web site. A Web site contains a lot of hyperlinks and contents conveying the message of that particular Web site. For instance, a web site of a university contains information about that university. The Hukoomi is a web portal, which offers the administrative access to information regarding the State of Qatar. It links us with government programs, services, initiatives and events. This report has presented a detailed analysis of the Qatar’s national website with respect to websites of other Gulf Cooperation Council nations. This report has analyzed different aspects of these websites and also suggested the ways to improve these lacking aspects. References Aimee Truchard, 1998. Ten Guidelines for User-Centered Web Design. [Online] Available at: http://www.stcsig.org/usability/newsletter/9807-webguide.html [Accessed 03 March 2012]. Government of Qatar, 2012. About Hukoomi. [Online] Available at: http://portal.www.gov.qa/wps/portal/about-hukoomi [Accessed 28 February 2012]. Government of Qatar, 2012. Media Center. [Online] Available at: http://portal.www.gov.qa/wps/portal/media-center [Accessed 29 February 2012]. Norton, P., 2001. Introduction to Computers, Fourth Edition. Singapore: McGraw-Hill. Shelly, Cashman & Vermaat, 2005. Discovering Computers 2005. Boston: Thomson Course Technology. U-C WEBS, 2010. Website Evaluation: Usability, Accessibility Analysis. [Online] Available at: http://www.u-cwebs.com/services/website-usability-analysis-evaluation/ [Accessed 28 February 2012]. Usability.Gov, 2012. Guidelines. [Online] Available at: http://www.usability.gov/guidelines/ [Accessed 28 February 2012]. UsabilityNet, 2006. Design guidelines for the Web. [Online] Available at: http://www.usabilitynet.org/tools/webdesign.htm#design [Accessed 02 March 2012]. Read More