The President of the Republic, Daniel Chapo, highlighted today, during the launch of the first National Conference on Digital Transformation, organized by the Ministry of Communications and Digital Transformation, the importance of digitization to “bring the State closer to citizens, reduce bureaucracy, and strengthen institutional integrity.”
During his speech, the head of state said that digital transformation is a political choice and one of the pillars of the current government cycle, going hand in hand with structural reforms focused on modernizing the state. “Technology only fulfills its purpose when it improves people’s lives: by reducing distances, democratizing opportunities, giving time back to citizens, or when it turns rights into accessible realities.”
The President also warned of the risks of maintaining analog mentalities and institutional fragmentation. “There will be no digital State if technological islands persist within the Government, systems that do not communicate, and databases that do not integrate,” he said, stressing that interoperability is essential to increase efficiency, protect lives in disaster situations, and ensure the country’s institutional memory.
In this context, Daniel Chapo emphasized that digitization should enable citizens to access public services from anywhere in the country or even abroad, including obtaining documents such as passports, identity cards, and driver’s licenses, as well as enabling the payment of taxes and fees in a simple and secure manner.
To consolidate digitization, Chapo announced that the government has already begun profound reforms, notably initiatives such as the creation of the Agency for Modernization and Innovation, the revision of legislation on cybersecurity and data protection, and the development of the Citizen Portal, a platform that will bring together public services in a simple and flexible way.
The President stressed that digital transformation is not just a technological issue, but a frontier of sovereignty in the 21st century, stating that, just as political and economic independence was built by previous generations, it is up to the current generation to consolidate the foundations of Mozambique’s technological and economic independence.
“We want a country where innovation is not the privilege of a few, where progress reaches all provinces and communities, and where no population is left on the margins of the future we are building,” he emphasized.
In the same spirit, the head of state announced the launch of a national challenge: the creation of a Multisectoral Technical Commission for Digital Services, with a mandate to present, by the end of the first half of this year, an integration plan that will transform the way the state serves Mozambicans, involving all sectors that provide digital services.
The Commission will have the mission to:
- Map existing services;
- Promote interoperability;
- Eliminate redundancies;
- Define priorities; and
- Propose a national roadmap for digital integration.
“We want a State that is just a click away on the phone or computer, but close to the needs of our people,” concluded the President.
source: Diário Económico
