News / National
Mobile registration exercise begins
01 Apr 2022 at 04:08hrs | Views
GOVERNMENT will today roll out the mobile registration exercise aimed at issuing more than two million birth, death certificates and national identity documents across the country as part of efforts to ensure all citizens have access to primary documents.
The exercise is in line with the dictates of the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) and has also been planned to coincide with the forthcoming national census and next year's harmonised elections.
In Bulawayo, there will be three teams deployed in more than 100 centres across the city. Today the exercise will be taking place at Milton Junior School, Entumbane Hall and Manondwane Primary School in Nketa suburb.
The Civil Registry offices will be open for the exercise from 7AM to 5PM between Monday and Friday and 7AM to 4PM during weekends and public holidays.
The exercise, which runs until September 30, is expected to clear the backlog in document issues that have been accumulating during the Covid-19 lockdowns, when the Civil Registry was only processing burial orders.
The blitz, which is being spearheaded by Civil Registry Department, is mainly focusing on the issuance of births and deaths certificates and national identity documents. In addition to mobile teams, all static registration offices will remain operational during this period.
In an interview yesterday, Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage Minister Kazembe Kazembe said all is set for the nationwide mobile registration exercise with several teams having been deployed across the country.
"All is set for the nationwide mobile registration exercise, which we are rolling out tomorrow through the Civil Registry Department to ensure that all our citizens acquire national documents.
We have quite a number of people without these vital documents which is why as Government we decided to intervene through this blitz," he said.
The Minister said they are targeting two million people with figures showing that the national backlog for the documents is sitting at one million.
"We had our backlog sitting at around one million but we know probably there are some people who have not even attempted to apply for these documents largely because of long queues.
This is a mobile exercise, which means we are going to where the people are and we have deployed teams in various stations across the country so that we issue birth certificates and national identity documents to our people," he said.
"We are targeting at least two million, more than double the number that we know."
Minister Kazembe said President Mnangagwa has ordered the relaxation of requirements to get national documents to ensure that citizens benefit from the mobile exercise.
"This is a task that we were given by His Excellency the President to make sure that everyone has a national identity document and we are saying between tomorrow and 30 September every citizen should be having national documents," he said.
Minister Kazembe said provinces have discussed some of the impediments that people were facing in acquiring the documents. He said the Civil Registry Department will embark on an awareness campaign notifying people about the requirements.
"I can promise that they won't be prohibitive as directed by the President. I therefore, urge all members of the public to take advantage of this opportunity to be fully registered," he said.
The exercise is also set to benefit thousands of people in the Matabeleland region who have complained that they were failing to get the documents.
For those affected by the Gukurahundi episode, the Civil Registry department will work under the guidance of traditional leaders to ensure that they are documented.
In January, Chiefs in the region indicated that they have started compiling a database of community members who have no IDs as part of efforts to address challenges that were rooted in post-independence disturbances.
This was after President Mnangagwa mandated traditional leaders to take a leading role in addressing the problems that were caused by Gukurahundi.
Families that were affected by the Gukurahundi episode had been complaining that they were failing to acquire the necessary documents since in some cases their parents died.
Lack of critical national documents has seen a few people, especially in Matabeleland provinces, failing to register to vote during the first phase of voter registration exercise, which was rolled out by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) between February 1 to February 28.
The mobile registration exercise will therefore provide an opportunity for citizens to obtain national identity documents which enable them to register as voters in next year's harmonised elections.
Civil Registry Offices across the country have been saddled with a backlog of documents for some time as Zimbabweans try to get identification documents.
With the country set to go for general elections next year, the identity documents are crucial for one to register as a voter.
In an effort to eliminate corruption, foster efficiency, effectiveness and to enhance revenue collection in the Civil Registry, Government has adopted a five-year strategy that seeks to automate and modernise work processes in the relevant departments.
This will see continued decentralisation of offices to complement existing ones.
The Civil Registry Department currently has 10 provincial registries, 62 district offices and 207 sub-offices throughout the country.
The exercise is in line with the dictates of the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) and has also been planned to coincide with the forthcoming national census and next year's harmonised elections.
In Bulawayo, there will be three teams deployed in more than 100 centres across the city. Today the exercise will be taking place at Milton Junior School, Entumbane Hall and Manondwane Primary School in Nketa suburb.
The Civil Registry offices will be open for the exercise from 7AM to 5PM between Monday and Friday and 7AM to 4PM during weekends and public holidays.
The exercise, which runs until September 30, is expected to clear the backlog in document issues that have been accumulating during the Covid-19 lockdowns, when the Civil Registry was only processing burial orders.
The blitz, which is being spearheaded by Civil Registry Department, is mainly focusing on the issuance of births and deaths certificates and national identity documents. In addition to mobile teams, all static registration offices will remain operational during this period.
In an interview yesterday, Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage Minister Kazembe Kazembe said all is set for the nationwide mobile registration exercise with several teams having been deployed across the country.
"All is set for the nationwide mobile registration exercise, which we are rolling out tomorrow through the Civil Registry Department to ensure that all our citizens acquire national documents.
We have quite a number of people without these vital documents which is why as Government we decided to intervene through this blitz," he said.
The Minister said they are targeting two million people with figures showing that the national backlog for the documents is sitting at one million.
"We had our backlog sitting at around one million but we know probably there are some people who have not even attempted to apply for these documents largely because of long queues.
This is a mobile exercise, which means we are going to where the people are and we have deployed teams in various stations across the country so that we issue birth certificates and national identity documents to our people," he said.
"We are targeting at least two million, more than double the number that we know."
Minister Kazembe said President Mnangagwa has ordered the relaxation of requirements to get national documents to ensure that citizens benefit from the mobile exercise.
"This is a task that we were given by His Excellency the President to make sure that everyone has a national identity document and we are saying between tomorrow and 30 September every citizen should be having national documents," he said.
Minister Kazembe said provinces have discussed some of the impediments that people were facing in acquiring the documents. He said the Civil Registry Department will embark on an awareness campaign notifying people about the requirements.
"I can promise that they won't be prohibitive as directed by the President. I therefore, urge all members of the public to take advantage of this opportunity to be fully registered," he said.
The exercise is also set to benefit thousands of people in the Matabeleland region who have complained that they were failing to get the documents.
For those affected by the Gukurahundi episode, the Civil Registry department will work under the guidance of traditional leaders to ensure that they are documented.
In January, Chiefs in the region indicated that they have started compiling a database of community members who have no IDs as part of efforts to address challenges that were rooted in post-independence disturbances.
This was after President Mnangagwa mandated traditional leaders to take a leading role in addressing the problems that were caused by Gukurahundi.
Families that were affected by the Gukurahundi episode had been complaining that they were failing to acquire the necessary documents since in some cases their parents died.
Lack of critical national documents has seen a few people, especially in Matabeleland provinces, failing to register to vote during the first phase of voter registration exercise, which was rolled out by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) between February 1 to February 28.
The mobile registration exercise will therefore provide an opportunity for citizens to obtain national identity documents which enable them to register as voters in next year's harmonised elections.
Civil Registry Offices across the country have been saddled with a backlog of documents for some time as Zimbabweans try to get identification documents.
With the country set to go for general elections next year, the identity documents are crucial for one to register as a voter.
In an effort to eliminate corruption, foster efficiency, effectiveness and to enhance revenue collection in the Civil Registry, Government has adopted a five-year strategy that seeks to automate and modernise work processes in the relevant departments.
This will see continued decentralisation of offices to complement existing ones.
The Civil Registry Department currently has 10 provincial registries, 62 district offices and 207 sub-offices throughout the country.
Source - The Chronicle
