Could tracking an application eventually become easier than chasing a paper file?
Zambia’s Secretary to the Cabinet, Patrick Kangwa, has directed government institutions to prioritise adoption of the Smart Office Platform. The directive was announced on 4 September during the platform’s commissioning and handover to Zambia Airports Corporation Limited.
SMART Zambia says the system is designed to improve records management, office workflows and service delivery. The National Coordinator was instructed to submit an onboarding progress report by the end of October.
Digital records and workflows could make documents easier to locate and administrative work easier to track. That is a potential benefit, rather than evidence that every participating office is already delivering faster services.
The practical test will involve staff training, reliable systems and measurable improvements for people using public services.
The October reporting deadline provides a useful checkpoint: which institutions have joined, what processes have changed, and are citizens receiving quicker responses?
Those answers will show how much the digital shift means outside government offices.
Sources: SMART Zambia: Smart Office adoption directive, 4 September 2026
Illustrative photo by Wesley Tingey / Unsplash. These are not records from a Zambian government office. Image source.