Dr. Bahaa Helmy Writes: Government Offices in 2030

DR-BAHAA HELMY·MONDAY, JULY 4, 2016

Dr. Bahaa Helmy

Some holders of senior posts in government offices insist that they will have a role in implementing the pillars of Egypt's Sustainable Development Strategy 2030, even though none of them has been assigned or notified to carry out any specific task at the ministry where he works. One of them asked what government offices would look like in 2030. I replied that they will be small, low-rise buildings of unique architectural design, with few floors and rooms in each building and no more than 55 people working in each office. Entry will only be by fingerprint or iris scan, and the buildings will be fitted with external and internal cameras to monitor and follow up performance and for security purposes. They will also be equipped with solar power and protection against fire and earthquakes, and each building will have a gym, a restaurant, a cafeteria and an internal radio. No citizens will visit these offices, because the government will have provided all services online and eliminated face-to-face contact with citizens in order to speed up transactions, combat corruption and bribery, and try to bring happiness to citizens, after most government employees have been moved to work in industrial and productive activity. Employees will work from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., with an hour's break for prayer and lunch, and will be responsible for the technical maintenance of computers and information systems, presenting statistics and the results of local and international studies, and providing the media materials and information that citizens need to see. Each office will have a «crisis management» group to deal immediately with any incident or emergency around the clock. As for roads, transport and traffic, no cars will be allowed to park on the street, as the garages attached to government offices will accommodate all vehicles. Employees will rely on the metro and on buses running on solar power and gas, fitted with screens and tracking devices and with maps to guide passengers to any location in Cairo; they will run on schedule, and passengers will board in turn. There will be no traffic problem after special areas and sites have been allocated for malls and shopping centers, including large car parks. One door of each metro car and the rear door of buses will also be reserved, after being fitted with a small lift from the ground to raise wheelchairs to the place allocated for helping people with disabilities and the elderly. A spirit of cooperation and of helping others, especially among young people aged 19 and under, will prevail everywhere, as they will have received a sufficient cultural grounding through the school curricula that will begin to be applied, God willing. As for the family, everyone will live in a clean and safe environment, because the telephone network will be linked to ambulance, fire, police, rescue, electricity, water and gas services and the animal welfare society, and household business and needs will be handled online and by credit card. One of them commented: these are legitimate dreams; why have the executive plans for this strategy not been put forward, and the role of every employee and citizen defined, so that implementation can begin immediately and these legitimate dreams come true?