Beijing, China: Beijing Bureau of City Administration and Law Enforcement, China, launched a new iPhone application, ‘I love Beijing’. The application enables residents to participate in the management of the city through a mobile platform, said the bureau’s Director of Information Systems and Equipment Services Centre to FutureGov.
This app is an extension of the GIS-based integrated service platform that the bureau launched in 2011. Both channels allow residents to locate nearby city administration agencies and law enforcers, correct errors in GIS map, make complaints and reports, as well as provide advices and suggestions. The bureau has recorded more than 8000 ‘meaningful engagements’ since the system went live.
Ding Jianjun, a Beijing resident and iPhone user, told FutureGov that the new App makes him more willing to engage with the government in city management matters. He and his friends have been talking about the new App through Weibo, China’s twitter-like microblogging service.
The bureau has established a three tier structure for city management and law enforcement covering the municipal, district and neighbourhood levels. It has also built close working relationships among frontline law enforcement agents, neighbourhood offices and resident councils. This is integrated with the web (and now mobile) engagement channel as well as a hotline. The aim is to ensure that the city is ultimately managed by the residents themselves.
The bureau is also exploring Android for the planned revamp of its mobile data devices that law enforcement units are using. The current generation is Windows based and an Android feasibility study is currently being undertaken.
Source: Future Gov
