By Emeka Aginam
For the second year running, Microsoft  has returned as a sponsor for 2016  Connected East Africa,    in the ICT Innovation Awards category with the showcase of new solutions designed to  help local governments improve their operations and service delivery.

With this year’s event focused on ‘Bridging the Service Gap’ in Africa, Microsoft partners introduced two new Cloud-based solutions, developed to promote service delivery focused on citizens.

The two solutions showcased are receiving funding and technical support through the Microsoft 4Afrika Innovate4Gov program, to help them implement and scale:

*BioSIM: Developed by I Choose Life, this solution tracks student enrolment, pupil and teacher attendance, performance and school fees. It works to generate real-time reports that help governments and policy makers make informed decisions around education and benchmark quality.

* eCabinet Solution: Developed by TechnoBrain, this solution is designed to help cabinet members draft and publish papers and proposals, record and manage meeting minutes and correspondence, and monitor relevant activities.

The Innovate4Gov program, launched in 2015, according to Microsoft  is designed to promote innovation in the public sector space.

The solution encourages startups, independent software vendors and developers to create local solutions in direct response to challenges and opportunities for better service delivery identified by governments.

The program also works with governments to train civil servants in embracing innovation and information technology.

This is in line with the Government of Kenya’s National ICT Masterplan to invest in and expand the way ICT is used in delivery.

“Governments across Africa are placing more and more importance on initiatives which will transform the way they work through ICT,”  Robert Mugo, Ag CEO from the Information Communication Technologies Authority of Kenya, said, adding that, “When properly designed and implemented, ICT can improve efficiency, simplify compliance with government regulations, strengthen citizen participation and trust, and save costs. Governments are hungry for innovation in this space to help identify and fill gaps.”

Also speaking, Azza El-Shinnawy, Director of Government Solutions at Microsoft 4Afrika said that,  “As Africa’s urban population grows, and some of the governments undergo devolution, ICT – and particularly cloud computing – is becoming an integral part of service delivery.

“Innovation should be at the core of how governments manage their programs and service delivery to its citizens. Citizens are now more than ever coming up with their own solutions in a hyperlocal context. Through Innovate4Gov, we bring together the demand for innovation in the public sector, with the supply of innovation in the private sector.”