UAE’s Ajman emirate pioneers the first micro e-payment option for a public service in the region

PAYFORT, the Arab world’s leading online payment service provider, announced today that the government of Ajman — one of the seven emirates that comprise the United Arab Emirates — now offers an e-payment option, powered by PAYFORT, for parking space payments. The new e-payment service positions Ajman as the first government in the region to offer pay-as-you-go credit card payment for parking and other government services.

Prior to the launch, drivers in Ajman paid for parking manually using coins, as has been common with many generations of motor vehicle drivers around the world. Ajman drivers can now pay for parking easily and conveniently through the Municipality and Planning Department – Ajman’s Android and iOS apps. To use the new service, drivers enter their car and credit card details into the app once and the credit card is saved as a token for future use. Parking fee payments are deducted from the user’s account as and when authorized by the user. Cars registered in other emirates are also eligible to use the service when in the emirate of Ajman.

“The Municipality and Planning Department – Ajman and the wider Ajman Government deserve recognition for pioneering the first smart payment option for a public service via a mobile app in the region,” said Omar Soudodi, Managing Director of PAYFORT. “App-based payment solutions are the future of fee payments for governmental services, and, with the launch of its first payment app, Ajman is positioning itself to be a future ‘smart city’.”

Given the UAE’s 74 per cent smartphone penetration rate – the highest in the world- it is fitting that the Municipality and Planning Department – Ajman be at the forefront of app-based payment system adoption. This is bolstered by the fact that the largest percentage of mobile payment users come from the 18- to 26-year-old demographic, which suggests that the importance of m-payment adoption will only increase in the future.

The parking payment service offered in Ajman is just one of the many ways in which PAYFORT payment solutions can be utilised by regional governments to streamline and improve their constituents’ payment experiences. The PAYFORT platform allows governments to provide citizen services and collect fees in real time through credit/debit cards or direct bank transfer, and it can support single or recurring payment transactions to support almost all services available today, be they utility payments, vehicle registrations and driver license renewals, payment of fines, business license renewals or most other services requiring payment.

In addition to improving the payment experience for its citizens, the PAYFORT platform can help government bodies deliver their services in a speedier fashion, all while reducing the operational burdens of the current paper-based, physical service delivery model.

The Municipality and Planning Department – Ajman joins the Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) Freezone, the UAE’s Federal Electricity and Water Authority (FEWA), and the Dubai Real Estate Institute as government institutions in the PAYFORT network.