RIYADH: The Riyadh municipality has set up an emergency call center with an investment of SR18.75 million to serve citizens and expatriates, who can call the center around the clock for help, to lodge complaints and to offer suggestions.
"This initiative will ensure prompt services to be offered by municipal workers in the capital city, which has emerged as the largest Saudi city with a population exceeding seven million people," said a spokesman for the Riyadh municipality.
The city, he said, is divided into 15 municipal districts managed by the municipality that is headed by the mayor of Riyadh and the Riyadh Development Authority that is chaired by Riyadh Gov. Prince Salman.
The spokesman said citizens and residents can call 940 in case of emergencies such as power failures, pothole accidents and floods. "The impact of this new initiative ... will be reflected on the everyday life of the city's ordinary citizens and residents," said Vipin Sharma, vice president of Tripp Lite, the American company involved in providing technical support to the municipality.
Tripp Lite has delivered technical support for the project while its Saudi partner, 2P for Telecommunication and Information Technology, has undertaken the implementation.
At present, there are 46 call center agents operating seamlessly through improved telephone lines provided by STC and state-of-the-art IT infrastructure, which all rely on Tripp Lite's industry-leading UPS to ensure continuous operations on a 24/7 basis. The system works even in the event of power interruptions and despite other technical glitches, he explained.
Referring to the tie-up between the Riyadh municipality and Tipp Lite, Boutros S. Frangieh, Tripp Lite's vice president for business development, said: "Our involvement demonstrates our strength in terms of providing critical power support for vital public facilities, as well as the significant impact of technology in developing civic services in the capital."
Riyadh is divided into 15 branch municipalities in addition to the high-security Diplomatic Quarter. The city has been further divided into more than 130 districts that fall under the Riyadh municipality for all sorts of services.
The branch municipalities are Al-Shemaysi, Irgah, Al-Maathar, Al-Olayya, Al-Aziziya, Al-Malaz, Al-Selayy, Nemar, Al-Neseem, Al-Shifa, Al-Urayja, Al-Batha, Al-Hair, Al-Rawdha, and Al-Shimal. Although the Riyadh Development Authority conducts projects in Diriyah, administratively, Al-Diriyah is a separate city outside the Riyadh municipality and is the seat of Al-Diriyah governorate.
By Ghazanfar Ali Khan
© Arab News 2010
