Beginning today, Tuesday, October 25, residents of St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) will be able to pay for services utilizing credit and debit cards at Customs and Excise, Inland Revenue Department, and the Commerce and Intellectual Property Office (CIPO).

The Agency for Public Information in a release said the Government of SVG is piloting its point-of-sale payment system for a number of its services.  To benefit from this enhanced payment service, citizens are always required to have a valid form of identification.

The introduction of these new payment methods comes as part of the Government’s implementation of the World Bank-funded Caribbean Digital Transformation Project, which has identified the development of citizen-facing digital government services as a key priority.

Additionally, the Government will soon be launching its interim E-Payment Platform GOVPAY which can be used to pay for a number of services online, the release said.

The piloting and rollout of these services form part of the Government’s digital transformation thrust aimed at improving the user experience for citizens accessing public services and improve the efficiency of internal government operations.

The release said there are currently a few services that are onboard the platform. Currently, Consultancy Associates Ltd. Hong Kong is providing consultancy services for the assessment, design, and development of technical specifications for a full-scale E-payments platform.

These services are expected to impact all citizens, particularly those living in the Grenadines, North Windward and North Leeward, enabling consumers to access services and information without time-consuming and costly physical journeys.

The Digital Transformation Project will focus heavily on eight (8) main components which are as follows: Data Protection, Cybersecurity, Single Window for Land and Property Transactions, Single Window for Trade Facilitation, E-Government Architecture, E- Tax, Unique Digital ID and Electronic Payments.