The government of Dubai aims to stop using paper by 2021.
The emirates Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed revealed the Dubai Pulse portal on Sunday. As the second phase of the Smart Dubai initiative, the portal will allow internet users to conduct transactions with the government and the private sector via their smartphones or computers.
"Dubai government will issue its last paper transaction in 2021," Sheikh Hamdan said.
Highlighting the significant shift the emirate has made and continues to make towards digital, Sheikh Hamdan said the future of Dubai is paperless.
"While we have already seen a great shift towards digital government transactions, I believe that the future of Dubai’s Government will be entirely paper free," he said.
In addition to eliminating paper transactions, Dubai Pulse is expected to reduce car trips for errands by 80 million over the next four years, according to Gulf News. The platform will compile data from both the public and private sectors, creating live and up-to-date data about the city for the first time.
Three years ago, Dubai's Ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid launched Smart Dubai to transform the emirate into a fully smart city with smart government services to make people’s lives and business dealings easier.
While Dubai Pulse will make life easier and more convenient for Dubai residents, it can also be seen as an important green initiative. The UAE has already been making significant strides toward being more environmentally conscious.
In January,> a top government official said that the nation may exceed its conservative target of producing 24 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2021.
"We not only do work in the field of sustainable energy for us but to help others because we believe we have to lead by example. The region needs success stories to learn from and so we like to share what we have with others,” UAE State Minister Dr. Rashid Bin Fahad said at the time.