UNDP’s assistance in digitalizing the mahalla system

The coronavirus pandemic has accelerated digitalization in many countries. In particular the unplanned shift to online work has accelerated the process of change in providing public services, which is currently very overloaded. The importance of creating online platforms for collaboration has been highlighted by the current crisis. In 2020, according to the UN, e-governance has improved in over 22% of countries around the world.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev recently noted that executives of all levels in Uzbekistan should undertake the digitalization process in their daily tasks. “People should feel these transformations in reducing bureaucracy and corruption, in accelerating the provision of public services,” he has said.

As public services must continue functioning effectively both during and after the Covid-19 pandemic, countries need to develop their digital infrastructures and educate people to use digital technologies, which will lead to the better provision of human rights and the meeting of basic needs.

UNDP, with financial support from the Government of Japan, has provided technical assistance to the Ministry for Support of Mahallas and Families in forming digital infrastructure and services. These are critical for developing social services to support women and socially-vulnerable groups of the population, increasing the efficiency of services, and expanding the role of mahallas in the population’s social life.

In particular, to ensure effective information exchange between the ministry and citizens' self-government bodies, there are plans to introduce an electronic document management system which will reduce the time required to process data, and will positively impact the speed and quality of public services provision. 100 mahallas have been identified for the pilot launch, and it is planned that the system be tested as part of their daily work.

In addition, to improve the ministry’s technical capabilities in providing social support to citizens (including women affected by violence, unemployed citizens in need of advanced training and assistance in finding suitable work, and socially-vulnerable families), there are plans to develop and implement a unified database of the Ministry for Support of Mahallas and Families. This system will collect and analyze information that will create a decision-making mechanism based on relevant data, which will help prioritize the delivery of social support to those in need. The collected data will also be made available to other government agencies, for undertaking analysis on relevant issues.

At the first stage of the system’s implementation the official website of the ministry was developed and tested, which can be found at https://moqqv.uz. On the website one can find information about the activities of the ministry, and related news and documents. The site will help improve communication between the ministry and the people.

To support the work of the above information systems UNDP will provide appropriate server and computer equipment to the Ministry for Support of Mahallas and Families, within the framework of the technical assistance project plans. It also plans to provide 100 laptops and routers, creating opportunities for engagement with the electronic document management system for employees of citizens' self-government bodies.