Lahja Nashuuta
More than 21 000 unregistered children and their families from geographically isolated and remote areas were issued birth certificates and identification cards (IDs) in February.
The influx of civic registration turnout is attributed to the mass registration of national documents outreach programmes of the home affairs ministry underway in the country.
The mass registration campaign has so far documented 21 701 countrywide between 5 February and 16 March.
This is the highest turnout the ministry has experienced since independence.
The ministry’s spokesperson, Magreth Kalo said so far, Ohangwena region has the highest registrations. Nearly 1 211 have been issued with birth certificates while 1 977 received IDs.
In the Kavango East region, 1 189 have received birth certificates while 832 received IDs.
Zambezi region also had a high turnout with 986 people receiving their birth certificates while about 1 366 were issued IDs.
In other regions such as Omusati, Oshana, and Oshikoto, people turned up to obtain identification cards.
According to the statistics provided by the ministry, 1 448 new IDs were issued in the Omusati region, 1 416 in Oshana, and 1 238 in the Oshikoto region.
Kalo said this is the first time in history that the ministry has undertaken the mass registration of Namibian citizens for the issuance of birth certificates and IDs.
She revealed that most of the birth registrants were unregistered children whose families live far from fixed civil registry points.
She further said a lot of people do not have national documents because there is a lack of awareness of the importance of birth documentation, unfamiliarity with the birth registration process, and lack of finances.
Through the mass civic registration outreach that is expected to end in July this year, the ministry intends to bring registration of births, duplicate birth certificates, applications for identity documents and duplicate ID cards to the community’s doorstep, said Kalo.
“In order to bring the service to the people, the ministry has set additional mobile registration points at schools, churches, and social places where unregistered citizens can acquire national documents,” Kalo said.
She explained that the mass registration campaign is an opportunity for every Namibian to obtain national documents and ensure they access services such as education, employment, social allowances, and financing.
“The ministry is aware that there are still people in our communities who do not have national documents, that’s why the ministry introduced an outreach campaign for national documents,” she said.
Kalo urged the public to embrace outreach mass registration and renewal of IDs.
She said all documents will be provided for free except those that are seeking duplicates, which will be issued at a fee of N$150 whereas the duplicate birth certificates will cost N$100.
“The ministry strongly encourages citizens across all 14 regions to avail themselves of the mass registration opportunities to register for essential national documents,” Kalo said.
Furthermore, civic mass registration is part of the ministry’s duty and fulfilling of its mandate, which includes facilitating seamless access to vital documentation for all.
“In adherence to its commitment to excellence in service delivery, the ministry is dedicated to ensuring that it provides high-quality services to the people it serves,” said Kalo.
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