Information and Communications Technology Minister Melford Nicholas says the country’s digital arrival and departure form is giving government agencies new information about visitors and a way to check hotel tax records.

Speaking at an artificial intelligence lecture at the University of the West Indies Five Islands Campus, Nicholas said the electronic form has replaced one travelers previously filled out by hand. The information it collects, he said, is proving useful beyond the arrival process.

According to Nicholas, the Ministry of Tourism can use the data to see where visitors come from, how long they stay and which properties they use. He said it has also given the Ministry of Finance and Inland Revenue Department information they can compare with hotel tax records.

Nicholas described that comparison as a new ability to reconcile information in the tax system with data about hotel stays. He did not provide figures showing whether it has led to changes in tax collections.

The minister cited the form as an example of why the government wants to digitize more services. Collecting information electronically can make it easier for agencies to use the same data to answer different questions, he said.

Nicholas also called for further investment in digital infrastructure, including a government data center with future artificial intelligence capability. He said bringing information from different public services together could help officials identify and respond to problems more quickly.

He did not announce a cost or timetable for the proposed data center.

This article was originally published by Antigua News Room. Read the original article here: Digital Arrival Forms Giving Antigua and Barbuda New Tourism and Tax Data, Nicholas Says.