The Rwanda National Police has put in place mechanisms that will enable Rwandans process their drivers’ licences online. According to Mary Gahonzire, the Commissioner General of Police, preparatory services like scheduling driving exams will be accessed with only a click.

Other services like issuing of fines and technical control of vehicles will also be offered as a way of delivering quick, better and efficient services Gahonzire said.

"We have introduced ICT applications in our traffic department to quicken services and also make them better,” she said.

About 35,000 Rwandans have registered with the Rwanda National Police (RNP) to acquire new electronic driving licences.

Close to 70,000 Rwandans still have the old licences. The new electronic licenses are plastic and bear a built-in data bar that will contain all details of the holder.

The process of registering for the electronic driving licenses started in the last quarter of 2008.

Only those who owned old driving licenses were registered on the list to get the electronic ones. As a way of verification, police are checking details of the old licenses to see if they correspond with details in the police data base.

The National Steering Committee in charge of issuing the electronic identification cards is also working in partnership with all Rwandan embassies to ensure that every national in the Diaspora gets their new document.

The government contracted the famous De La Rue, a British security printing, papermaking and cash handling Systems Company headquartered in Basingstoke Hampshire, to manufacture the cards.

In a related development, Gahonzire warned irresponsible officers especially those who waste time or drink while on duty: "This taints the good image of the force before the people you serve,” she said.

Gahonzire also lashed out at those who continue to shun their professional ethics and fail to meet the standards of the code of conduct saying that this compromises good service provision to the public.

"This directly undermines the mandatory responsibility of serving and protecting the people hence creating a wrong public perception of the whole force,” she said.

"As a national institution we need to streamline our services. There are a few individuals who still hold us back by acting unprofessionally.”

She pointed out that a Directorate of Inspectorate had been set up to receive complaints about the police, carry out audit services and implement the code of conduct to ensure that minimum standards are met.

"We have introduced multiple lines where various people can simultaneously access the traditional emergency hot line (112). As public servants who are paid by taxes from the public, it is important to provide services worth their money,” she said.

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