Dubai Customs was awarded the 100% Paperless Stamp from Dubai Digital Authority. The ‘Stamp’ is awarded to government entities that have fully implemented the Dubai Paperless Strategy, inaugurated at the beginning of 2020 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, and Ruler of Dubai. The strategy aims at turning Dubai into the happiest and smartest city in the world, and raising the efficiency of Government performance.
The objective is to save more than a billion papers used in Dubai Government each year, which would save 130,000 trees, save each visitor and resident in Dubai 40 hours a year, and more than AED900 million that would have been used to buy paper.
Dubai Customs managed to eliminate 40.6 million papers based on consumption rates of 2018. In 2019, Dubai Customs started its paperless plans and reduced the consumption of printing papers by 50.58%, and that rate increased to 97% in April 2020 to hit the 100% paperless milestone in 2021.
To achieve this, Dubai Customs has implemented a number of qualitative initiatives including the exemption of a physical certificate of origin in cases when no customs charges are needed, electronic archiving, digitizing training materials, online surveys, and encouraging clients to use smart channels for their transactions.
H.E. Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, Director General of Dubai Customs,CEO of Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporationexpressed his happiness for reaching this milestone and obtaining the 100% Paperless Stamp, which reflects the leading position Dubai Customs reached in digital transformation and the quality of services provided to the clients, he said.
Dubai Customs ranked second on the Dubai Government Happiness Index 2021 scoring 91.8%.
On his part, Juma Al Ghaith, Executive Director of Customs Development Division at Dubai Customs said: “The advanced digital structure and creative projects developed in-house by the Development Division have helped in expediting customs procedures and services. During the height of the pandemic, we managed to provide uninterrupted services to our clients, supporting both local economy and global supply chain. It was no surprise that Dubai Customs was named the ‘Best PMO in the World 2020’ at the PMO Global Awards organised by the PMO Global Alliance, the leading global community of project management professionals. The award recognises the consistent international standards and exceptional project management practices maintained by Dubai Customs.”
The PMO Global Awards is the world’s largest professional award for Project Management Offices, their organizations and leaders.
