The Shenzhen Residence Card program is one of the pilot projects advocated by China’s Ministry of Public Security to reform the nation’s household registration system. Development of the entire Shenzhen Residence Card program is expected to take three years, with a total investment of approximately $390 million, an estimated $39 million of which has been set aside for the development and implementation of an information management system.
Phase I of the Shenzhen Residence Card Information Management System is valued at approximately $2.2 million dollars and is expected to commence in the third quarter of 2007.
The system is an integral part of the entire Shenzhen Residence Card program. Through an integrated information transfer platform, the new system will facilitate several social programs in Shenzhen, including social welfare management, one-child policy family planning management, education management and house rental management.
The system will enable various government agencies to access information regarding immigrant populations and improve public management capabilities. In the near future, the Shenzhen Residence Card Information Management System may be expanded to be compatible with other applications, such as Trans Card (an e-currency card used in Shenzhen for buses, subways and other small purchases), and could be used to access medical history, personal credit history, and driving records.
China’s Ministry of Public Security plans to first deploy the Residence Card Information Management System in China’s largest cities, including Shanghai and Shenzhen, and, if successful, the system may be extended to 660 cities across China.
