A common system to end our administrative burden

Last week I asked a question on my social media that may sound simple but touches the very core of Malta’s administrative burden due to the current system. Technically, I asked whether we could build a common database that tracks all movements across different departments. What I meant is that we greatly need a system where all other systems talk to each other, a backbone that integrates the fragmented silos we currently experience. Certainly, the most logical anchor for such a system is the Identity Card number, because it is the one identifier that defines us all. However, despite its potential, we continue to operate in isolation, with each authority demanding its own proofs, its own receipts, its own backdated documentation, while at times failing to update the most basic information on each system. The result is a bureaucratic nightmare that wastes time and money.

For instance, consider the Housing Authority – I am not sure if this happens already – which could easily link rental agreements to a database of identity card numbers, ensuring stricter compliance in subsidies, eligibility, as well as rental income. Mind you, they are quite efficient and updated, and I was impressed with their strict compliance and organisation. Also, consider the public hospitals being able to connect the patients’ billing systems to the same database with updated postal addresses, especially given Malta’s growing foreign population. The same applies for social security, whereby to conduct means testing, rather than asking for outdated criteria of backdated receipts, even up to seven years from people, movements of those applying for the same benefits could easily be tracked. Ditto for tax refunds, pension cheques, ARMS bills, Enemalta accounts, water services, driving licenses, LESA, police records, and Transport Malta registrations. And I can carry on mentioning other authorities that could subsequently be streamlined through one integrated system. Instead, we have multiple systems that contribute to fragmentation. And it is truly a nightmare when changing your postal and home address, also in view that today we have a lot of people renting rather than purchasing dwellings, especially foreigners who settle in Malta for a period of time. If we have visibility, we can strengthen our security, even though Malta was listed as one of the safest countries globally, and highly attractive to FDI.

During the pandemic, letters were sent to individuals urging them to take the Covid-19 vaccine, with some who had been deceased for years and others who had emigrated decades ago. They too have a separate system. This is symptomatic of a deeper failure to attach the administration of public health systems with updated databases. However, without visibility across services, we cannot oversee what is happening effectively. Competing with other member states on human capital, artificial intelligence, and supply side economics requires accuracy. We cannot move forward if our administrative machinery is still archaic. Personally, I think that a common database system can save on duplication and inefficiency and save us gargantuan sums of money. This is an opportunity cost, for we can invest this money more productively. Every euro wasted on inefficiency is a euro lost to other projects. Well, this is not a matter of ideology but a matter of strict governance. The data protection excuse has become handy to not do anything about it.

To make matters worse, when I raised this issue on my social media, a prominent authority responded not to the substance of my argument but to a sarcastic comment I left to someone else without ever mentioning them. When I saw their comment, I asked them to reply to my original status and to tell me whether such a proposal was achievable. They promised me to come back. Beyond digital integration, physical consolidation could also help. Imagine a regenerated Marsa hosting a one-stop-shop for birth certificates, ID cards, passports, and other essential services. Indeed, citizens would save time, less traffic, reduce emissions, and cut office rental expenses in a country devoid of office space which is crying for space to host additional businesses and FDI. Efficiency is not only digital but also spatial. Concentrating services in one accessible hub would symbolise a state that values its citizens’ time, as well the use of our limited land. Across Europe, member states are investing heavily in interoperable systems. The Schengen Information System already provides a model for tracking entries and exits. However, this database on its own is not enough. We must align with such standards not only of this system but the rest of the multiple systems that exist.

The EU’s emphasis on digitalisation is not cosmetic, so much so that they are now relaxing some data protection regulations on AI, otherwise they cannot compete with both China and the USA. Certainly, without integrated databases, member states cannot enforce labour laws, manage pensions, or ensure fair redistribution of funds. Malta’s next level is to strengthen its credibility on such matters. And while the government has rightly announced an investment of €100 million in artificial intelligence, and to push for additional investments in digital entrepreneurs, which is truly commendable, we must accelerate these investments. Obviously, we cannot solve our problems with AI if we have not yet managed to organise ourselves with human intelligence. Technology cannot compensate for disorganisation. AI can enhance efficiency and save us plenty of time, but it cannot fix a system that refuses to integrate its own basic records. What I am proposing is not radical, if it already exists.

We just need to enforce the common database anchored in the ID card system. Connect all authorities to it, while ensuring real time updates for births, deaths, pensions, taxes, benefits and what have you. And in tandem, we use the system to eliminate duplication and reduce waste. I am positive that this is truly achievable. This government never shied away when faced with big challenges. Otherwise, the alternative is continued bureaucracy, and letters to the deceased, pensions lost in translation, benefits bulldozed through outdated criteria, and citizens left to navigate a bureaucratic nightmare. And this problem has been ongoing for the past three decades. Those who claim that when they took over the country and modernised it 35 years ago, surely, they did not modernise these systems. The same applies to the current administration.

Indeed, Malta cannot afford to drift on such matters. Certainly, to compete with other member states, to attract human capital, to harness artificial intelligence, and to strengthen our supply side economics, we must modernise our administrative backbone. A common database is not a luxury, especially if it already exists. Undoubtedly, it is a necessity. The question is not whether we can build it. The question is whether we have the courage to get our act together. Surely, the time for integration is now. And we should stop the excuse of data protection concerns and align ourselves to what is happening abroad. The PL government has the means and expertise to do it. Please, just execute it.