Kuwait National Guard Company
Background
The Kuwait National Guard or National Guard is an independent main combat institution tasked mainly
with the defense of the State of Kuwait and its territories. The National Guard traces its heritage
directly to the cavalrymen and infantrymen that defended Kuwait's three mounted defensive walls.
Since inception, the Kuwait National Guard under the guidance of the respective leadership; executed,
participated and supported in carrying all conflicts in which the Military of the State of Kuwait
engaged since 1967.
The founding of the Kuwait National Guard was first conceived during the Six Day War and following
the outcomes of Operation Vantage when Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah was the Crown Prince of Kuwait
through the 2nd decree of 1967 on June 6 during the reign of the Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah
Al-Salim Al-Sabah. A mission for this purpose was led by Sheikh Salem Ali Al-Salem Al-Sabah, who was
the driving force in forming the various tasks forces within the National Guard and who has remained
at the head of the institution since its enacting in 1967.
Business Needs & Challenges
Many civilians require access to the remote premises and facilities protected by KNG. It is
imperative for KNG to manage the process end-to-end. Civilians need to be registered in order
to grant them access to the premises. This, by itself is a mundane task for KNG resources.
When visitors arrive at a premise, it is necessary to verify their credentials and check whether
they have a permit or not. This presents several challenges:
-
The number of visitors during peak operation hours is very high, making it difficult for KNG
resources to collect visitor details, store a copy of the provided credentials securely in
the drawers and either allow or deny access to the facility.
-
Capturing visitor demographics is a time-consuming and error-prone process. Visitors expect a
swift and efficient process of getting access to facilities and are not willing to wait
until their details are captured.
-
It is challenging to find a reliable network and provide KNG resources at the remote
locations the mobility they need while performing security checks.
Characteristics of a viable solution
A viable solution needs to provide the following capabilities:
- Provide KNG Resources with adequate mobility in order to perform security checks on-the-go.
-
Capture Visitor Demographics as accurately and efficiently as possible, without forcing
KNG Resources to enter too much detail.
- Keep a copy of the presented credentials in records.
- Make no compromises in terms of visitor data quality.
Solution
Kuwait National Guard teamed with Sharper Software to provide
SharperVisitorLogs
for every KNG Resource at the remote locations. Sharper Software delivered
a set of Android tablets, Smart Civil ID readers and the accompanying software and trained the
end users on how to use the technology. All visitor-facing KNG Resources have to do is enter a
visitor's Smart Civil ID into the reader. If the visitor has a valid permit, the Android app shows
a green indicator. If the visitor does not have a valid permit, the app shows a yellow indicator.
In these scenarios, the user is allowed to log the visitor in, or deny access to the facility. In
case the visitor is black-listed, the app shows a red indicator and the visitor is denied access
to the facility. Meanwhile, the visitor's demographics, including name in both English and Arabic,
Sex, Date of Birth, Blood Group, Nationality, Address, etc. are all captured automatically off
the presented credentials and stored in the backend systems for reporting purposes. This saves
the time required to have a no-compromise visitor data accuracy. Since this information is
maintained by the Public Authority for Civil Information, all such data is according to the
official records. This serves as a good measure against repudiation.
An administrator at each remote location maintains a list of valid permits by managing the
permits displayed on their computer screen. This web application allows the user, based on
granted permissions, to add or remove a civilian visitor from the black list. All such actions
are audited.
At any point in time, an administrative person can query the system to find details about a
visitor, providing means to perform security audits when necessary. Management can also get
statistical reports about peak operating hours, tenants with the highest number of visitors, etc.
