Edo people are yet to see giant strides of development under Governor Obaseki. The All Progressives Congress-led Government will continue to improve on governance and delivery of dividends of democracy every new day, particularly now that the state is blessed to have a digital “wake and see” governor who knows and appreciates the importance of technology to the development and advancement of any modern society.
Citizens of the state woke up last Tuesday to the cherry news that the Edo State Governor Mr. Godwin Obaseki of Edo has inaugurated a 13-member committee on digital literacy, to advance the course of Information Technology (ICT) in the state. Represented by his Deputy, Comrade Philip Shaibu, also assured that his target of ensuring a paperless way of transacting government business would not lead to job loss but efficiency in governance. This is a wow as far as all Edo people are concerned.
There are lots of advantages derivable from this new plan of the Edo State government. For instance, photocopiers are very expensive to purchase and maintain. By going paperless, employees can access and edit a digital document then electronically send it to a co-worker or save it. Even using their phones to scan and send documents immediately. These documents can also be accessed simultaneously, eliminating the need for multiple copies.
Also, about 7 percent of all paper documents get lost or misfiled. A secure and backed up paperless environment, greatly minimizes the risk of losing or misplacing a digital document. And if a disaster should occur, digital documents can often be recovered, whereas paper documents could be gone eternally.
Again, with simple email management strategies, there is no need for staff to spend tedious hours organizing, reviewing and deleting emails. Emails should be treated like any other type of electronic file and be immediately categorized into an appropriate folder.
There is no doubting the fact that many people think the switch to paperless will cost more, in terms of training, hardware and software than continuing to be paper-based. But that is certainly not the case. The advantages surely outweigh the disadvantages. while expenses do exist, the return on investment is massive. For some operations, the switch to paperless can pay for itself within a matter of weeks or months.
Essentially, paper is particularly time-consuming to work with as it requires a great deal of time and labour to organize and retrieve. On the average, office staff spend about one hour per month searching for and replacing files. The move by the Edo State Government to go paperless could pay for itself within a month. In the judiciary for instance, once Edo goes paperless, this would help to accelerate the dispensation of justice. It would also mean that Edo State Judges, just like their contemporaries overseas can now be admitting electronic evidence in court to back up cases. Lawyers, judges and litigants would all stand to benefit from a paperless Edo State.
Printing hard copies of documents requires the purchase of paper, toner, ink, the printers and their maintenance. In most organizations, going paperless can save more than N100,000 per person per year in these supplies.
Again, paper files take up space and many organizations are forced give up their office space to file cabinets and boxes of documents. Paperless offices greatly minimize their need for storage space as a single hard drive, or the Cloud, can store millions of documents. Searching for files while people wait on the phone is not an efficient process. When digital documents can be found instantaneously by keyword search, customer service can greatly improve.
Paper documents are not as secure as many people might think. It’s pretty simple to access files in an office, even if there are locks on individual filing cabinets, they are usually not hard to break. Electronic security systems that require passwords track when documents are accessed as well as who accessed them and exactly what changes were made.
Lastly, If an organization keeps most of its information on paper, the threat of fire or water damage should be a serious concern. Electronic documents can be easily backed up and stored offsite or even in the cloud! It means documents can never be missing if government wants them.
Edo people are glad that the committee, headed by the Commissioner for Science and Technology, Mr Emmanuel Abale, also had heads of tertiary educational institutions and top government functionaries in the state as members. This is germane because the same Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has said that his administration will continue to prioritise technology-based learning in public schools across the state.
The is against the backdrop that the state has commenced the retooling of the educational system in the state, with the restructuring of the state’s Universal Basic Education Board, and engaging experts to prioritise technology-driven learning curriculum. The Governor has assured Edo people that the APC-led government is introducing the use of technology in the teaching and learning processes in primary schools across the state.
The joy of an average Edo man is that all of these decision of Governor Obaseki and his team will impact positively on the quality education obtainable in the state under their watch. This would equally lead to improved access to quality education direly needed to prepare our children for a secure future. It is therefore important for all Edo people both at home and abroad to give all our support to the Obaseki-led administration in the state. When this successfully happens come April, Edo State would emerge as the very first sub-national government in the country to go paperless with all the attendant benefits.
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• Mr. Dan Owegie is a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Edo State.
