The delegations participating in the 7th Meeting of the GCC Smart Card Steering Committee have hailed the wise decision taken by the UAE prudent leadership with respect to unifying ID card registration fees for all GCC citizens.
At the end of their meetings, the representatives of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait and GCC General Secretariat have affirmed that this step stresses the UAE prudent leadership’s keenness on strengthening and supporting the GCC process of joint action through the prudent decisions and initiatives that are in the interest of all GCC countries and peoples.
Cable of Thanks
Meanwhile, the delegations participating in the 7th Meeting of the GCC Smart Card Steering Committee sent a cable of thanks to HH General Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, Chairman of Executive Council and Chairman of Emirates Identity Authority, may Allah protect him, in which they expressed the most sincere thanks and appreciation for his kind patronage of the GCC joint committees, which reflected his keenness on enhancing their role and enabling them to discharge the tasks assigned to them.
They also expressed their most sincere thanks and appreciation for HH Lieutenant General Sheikh Saif Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior and Deputy Chairman of Emirates Identity Authority, for his diligent follow-up, sincere efforts and limitless support for the process of development of the GCC Smart Card Steering Committee, since its inception, based on his belief in its important role in making a success of the digital ID projects in the GCC countries.
Lengthy Discussions
The GCC Smart Card Steering Committee held its 7th meeting at the Emirates Palace Hotel in the capital Abu Dhabi on Sunday and Monday, Jumada Al Akhira 4 and 5, 1432 A.H, corresponding to May 8 and 9, 2011. The meeting was chaired by H.E. Dr. Eng. Ali Mohamed Al Khouri, Emirates ID Director General, who is also the chairman of its delegation, and saw the participation of the delegations representing all member countries and the GCC General Secretariat.
The working sessions witnessed lengthy discussions of the agenda items, about which viewpoints were exchanged in the light of the working papers and reports submitted by the member countries and the memoranda of the GCC General Secretariat. The committee listened to the procedures that had been taken by the member countries to implement the committee’s previous decision related to electronic reading of smart cards among GCC exits as per the (common API) program, which is fully implemented by some countries.
Working Team
The committee called on all the countries, which had not yet applied the agreed on technical procedures, to apply the same as soon as possible. It also decided to form a technical team consisting of the representatives of the member countries to track the application by these countries of the agreed on reading program, provided that Bahrain would co-ordinate and follow up with these countries and handle the obstacles that might hinder the application of the program before submitting an integrated report on this issue to the technical team in its next meeting scheduled to be held in the GCC General Secretariat during the second half of June 2011.
Electronic Portals
The committee discussed the transport area protection mechanism (GCC – LDS) and the use of smart cards in electronic portals. After listening to the committee members’ views, the committee decided that the member countries refer their views and notes on these two issues to the above-mentioned technical team to study them comprehensively and make specific recommendations to the next meeting of the committee.
In addition, the committee listened to the procedures in force in the member countries with respect to Their Highnesses and Their Excellencies Ministers of Interiors’ decision to seek a mechanism for the travel of citizens of all age categories by smart cards. This was done in the light of the committee’s recommendation in its 5th meeting (December 2008), in which it clarified that there were no technical obstacles hindering the issuance of personal ID cards to all age categories for facilitated travel among the member countries. The member countries, however, would take the necessary procedures to pass a law for the issuance of personal ID cards for citizens of all age categories.
Proof of Identity
The committee discussed the adoption of the smart card as a proof of identity for GCC citizens in the member countries. It also discussed its recommendation made in its 5th meeting which stipulated that the authorities concerned in the member countries issue laws and decisions binding on the public and private sectors to adopt the personal ID card as a proof of identity for GCC citizens.
Due to the importance of this issue, which helps facilitate the dealings of GCC citizens inside the GCC countries, the committee recommended that this issue be submitted to the Ministerial Council to take the appropriate procedures as regards the adoption of the smart card as a proof of identity for the GCC citizens in the member countries.
Smart Card Applications
Later, the committee reviewed the member countries’ reports on the possibility of using the smart card applications in the field of driving licenses. As the member countries needed a sufficient time to study this issue from all its technical aspects and in order to overcome some procedural difficulties in this connection, the committee decided to postpone the discussion of this issue to its next meeting, provided that the committee members would approach the authorities concerned in their countries so that their views and comments on this issue would be discussed in the committee’s next meeting.
The committee requested Bahrain to roll out its study about the data wanted to be incorporated in the ID card to all the member countries in the steering committee, enabling them to benefit from it.
Meanwhile, the committee discussed the member countries’ reports on the addition of the health file to the smart card applications and agreed to task the GCC General Secretariat with calling for a joint meeting between the steering committee and the people concerned at the ministries of health in the member countries to agree on the data and the fields related to the health file.
Steering Committee’s Next Meeting
The GCC Smart Card Steering Committee decided to hold its 8th meeting in January 2012 in co-ordination with the host country.
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