MONTEGO BAY, St James — An app designed to streamline and reduce processing time for event permits has been well-received by potential users.

Among those who have welcomed the digital tool, called Atendify, is party and event promoter Andre “Pnut” Brown.

“Anything that infuses technology and solves problems, it’s something that we have to adapt,” he told the Jamaica Observer following a presentation by app developers during a St James Municipal Corporation-hosted forum for entertainment players on Tuesday.

Brown explained that the current system is time-consuming as it requires applicants to make several physical stops before their permits can be processed.

“What they are attempting to solve is one of our biggest problems,” he remarked.

“There are so many hindrances that wouldn’t want to fully motivate you to go here and there across Montego Bay, especially the traffic. Having a platform where everybody can go to and they can get all the steps filled out the same exact way as physically going there is solving a problem,” he added.

The team behind Atendify is shopping it as a convenient tool that will transform the way permits are processed.

“This will save applicants time, which in turn saves them money. They don’t have to be buying gas, taking taxi, and all of that; this is more efficient,” said Mario Thomas, a partner in the venture.

He explained that the concept was born after he saw the challenges faced by some promoters trying to get event permits during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now at the pilot phase, the presentation to the local authorities in St James is just one of those planned for municipal corporations across the country.

The application, which is Web-based at present, allows promoters to apply and track submissions made to the local authorities.

“They will be able to see the venues that are available in the parish, pay the fees, upload required documentation from the comfort of their own homes or wherever they are with just the Internet and a capable device,” Thomas said.

He said once the municipal corporations are on board, the plan is to eventually expand the service to other agencies involved in the approval process and really make it all- inclusive.

He is encouraging promoters and other stakeholders to familiarise themselves with the site ahead of its official roll-out.

According to Thomas, mayor of Montego Bay, Councillor Richard Vernon invited his team to make their presentation during Tuesday’s meeting. The mayor told the Observer he is in favour of any move that will make his team more efficient.

“We are tapping into the virtual space daily and with that we have to leverage the opportunity to do online applications to increase efficiency in the process,” Vernon remarked.

“When they are keeping their events people have to go to several agencies to get approvals. We want the online process to be a one-stop shop. It will communicate that information to the relevant entities where they’ll review and approve and we’ll get the final information,” he outlined.

He anticipates that once the app is up and running efficiently, it will significantly reduce the time it takes to process applications.

“We encourage individuals to come about 60 days before the event day. But now we expect a turnaround time to be about three weeks and, for the smaller events, the application time is at least 30 days, two weeks for that turnaround time,” Vernon said.

He anticipates that, moving forward, a similar system can be utilised for processing other permit fees — such as those paid by barbers and hairdressers — collected by the corporation.

“This is something that can be done online. Some people find it difficult to pay because they can’t find the time to come in. With this they can pay from the comfort of where they are,” the mayor said.