PHILIPSBURG (DCOMM):--- The Honorable Prime Minister Sarah Wescot Williams congratulated the Department of Communication on the revamping and redesign of the Official Government of Sint Maarten website www.sintmaartengov.org. The Prime Minister stated that the new website is another example of Government's commitment to openness and the possibilities the internet offers to do so. The Prime Minister also stated that Government is always striving to stay up to date with the relevant advances in technology and how this relates to the dissemination of information to the general public; "Government strives to be on the cutting edge and therefore needs to constantly revisit how it provides information to the public. In terms of content, we again note the translated laws, which go a long way in empowering our citizens," commented Prime Minister Wescot-Williams.
Acting Head of DCOMM Rodney Richardson stated that the Government website was first launched during the month of June 2010 in preparation of the transition to Country Sint Maarten. Since then, the Department of Communication has taken a number steps to improve the user experience while visiting the website. After many complaints and discussions a final decision was taken in 2013 to proceed with the revamp and redesign of the website. Leading the redesign project were Webmaster Jeanelle Mardembrough, Policy Worker Marsha Gumbs Beauperthuy and technology consultant Ricardo Eights of CompuTech. On April 3rd the redesigned website was uploaded and made available to the general public.
The main goals of the redesign were:
- Improve the overall look and feel of website.
- Improve the navigation experience by bringing frequently requested information forward.
- Improve the delivery of information with new methods and features within the website.
The front page of the website has added features such as a new alert scroll that announces road closures and other emergency notices of all Government Departments. The latest press releases are featured prominently with access to video on demand and a photo gallery of the Council of Ministers, Ministries and Government related activities. To improve navigation there is a colorful carousel of 12 tabs that include Council of Ministers, Laws, Services & Forms, Health Updates, Civil Registry and Immigration Services.
The Prime Minister encourages the general public to explore the website, of special interest to the Prime Minister is the Tab on Laws where the Constitution of Sint Maarten can be found in English and Dutch along with the recently translated laws. Another important feature to the website that has been worked on for some time now is the availability of the National Gazette, which is also available online for perusal.
