Audrey Marks pushes digital wallet and data exchange to cut red tape in Jamaica

Jamaica’s public sector is moving deeper into digital services, with plans that could make everyday transactions simpler and help people do business more quickly, including the possibility of opening a bank account in less than an hour.

Minister of Efficiency, Innovation and Digital Transformation Ambassador Audrey Marks presented the programme on Wednesday as she made her first sectoral debate contribution in the House of Representatives.

Marks said a digital document wallet is being developed as the next step after the multi-agency rollout of electronic motor vehicle certificates.

“This will allow citizens to securely store and share Government-issued documents electronically, including their motor vehicle documents, birth certificates, national identification cards and any other civic documents that they want to store in the wallet,” she told Parliament.

She said the change would bring “more convenience and more efficiency”.

Marks, the first-term Member of Parliament for Manchester North East, also pointed to GovNotify, a service intended to bring Government alerts and updates into one place through e-mail, text messages and WhatsApp.

Under that initiative, Jamaicans would be able to get prompts about passports, driver’s licences and other documents that are close to expiry, similar to alerts now sent for motor vehicle registration and fitness certificates.

“The people of Jamaica will be able to receive reminders for expiring passports, driver’s licences, and other important updates similar to notifications being received for motor vehicle registration and fitness certificates. Because we all need reminders sometimes,” Marks said.

She stressed that the measures form part of a wider plan, not separate projects operating on their own.

“These are not isolated initiatives. They represent a deliberate shift toward a government that is more efficient. But to deliver these services seamlessly and at scale, they must be connected,” she said.

Marks, whose ministry is located in the Office of the Prime Minister, said her office introduced the Jamaica Data Exchange Platform, known as JDXP, last month. She called it a “foundational pillar of our digital transformation agenda”.

The minister said Jamaicans have long been forced to visit several offices, carry the same documents from place to place, complete repeated forms and wait too long to finish routine business.

She said JDXP is meant to end that pattern by allowing approved Government systems to share information electronically in a secure, managed and standardised way.

“It allows institutions to securely verify information directly at the source instead of requiring citizens to carry documents everywhere,” Marks said.

She described the platform as a reliable digital link among Government agencies and businesses.

For example, she said, a person seeking to open a bank account could have their identity checked instantly through their national identification card.

“Not a JP (justice of the peace) letter, not a reference form, no back-and-forth, no duplication. No delays,” Marks said.

The minister said she wants Jamaica to reach the standard where bank accounts can be opened in under one hour.

“It is my intention that opening a bank account in Jamaica should move to first-world standards where accounts can be opened in under one hour,” she said.

Marks said she believes JDXP can help deliver that change and alter how citizens and businesses interact with the State. She linked the platform to what she called the “Once-Only, Zero Bureaucracy Principle”.

According to Marks, people should not have to keep giving the same details to different arms of Government.

“Through the Once-Only principle being powered by the Jamaica Data Exchange Platform, information provided once to the Government can now be securely shared, with consent, and reused across multiple ministries, departments and agencies — reducing duplication, improving efficiency, and delivering a more seamless, citizen-centred public service experience,” she said.

Marks told the House that the projects reflect an organised effort to modernise public services and improve how Jamaicans deal with Government in daily life.

“The foundation has been established, the systems are being integrated and the direction is clear,” she said.