Stefanus Nashama
In just three months, the Ministry of Home Affairs, Immigration, Safety, and Security has received a total of 34,000 applications through the mass civic registration program countrywide.
Services on offer during the outreach program include national documents such as birth registration for persons of all ages, applications for duplicate birth certificates, applications for identity documents, and applications for duplication of identity documents.
The outreach registration program began on 5 February and will run until 30 July.
Margaret Kalo, the ministry’s public relations officer, said that applications for the mass civic registration outreach program will be accepted from 5 February to 7 May.
“In March, 17 182 applications were received nationwide, indicating an increase of 16 818 new applications,” she said.
The program aims to increase registration coverage for national documents, especially for those in hard-to-reach areas such as villages, vulnerable communities, and schools.
Kalo further said the ministry will exempt 500 people per constituency from paying for birth certificates and ID cards. This, she said, targets vulnerable people, including those affected by disasters such as fire, who may be unable to pay for necessary documents.
“We want this news to reach across the country to ensure that people have registered for national documents,” she stated.
At the same time, Kalo emphasised that the program is made available to make it easy for people who are not able to reach where such services are offered in the country.
According to Kalo, birth certificate registration requires people to bring along proof of birth from where the child was born, parents’ national documents, valid passports (if parents are non-Namibians), marriage certificates (if the parents are married), and declarations.
Proof of birth is obtainable from the hospital where the mother gave birth or from a person who witnessed the birth in the case where the child being registered was delivered at home, she stressed.
She clarified that there would be no charge for those applying for birth certificates for the first time, but there would be a fee of N$100 for those applying for duplicate birth certificates.
This, she said, increases to N$100 for every duplicate issued.
Kalo has stressed that individuals who wish to register for an ID must meet the following requirements: they must be Namibian citizens or permanent resident holders, they must be 16 years of age or older, and they must provide an original Namibian birth certificate along with a certified copy of the birth certificate or certified copies of citizenship and permanent resident permit certificates.
She added that officials at the mobile registration centres would take fingerprints and images for ID registrations.
According to Kalo, those applying for IDs for the first time will not be required to pay, but those applying for duplicate IDs will have to pay N$150, which increases by the same amount for each duplicate ID issued.
“The national documents are very important and provide a sense of belonging as well as establish a person’s legal identity.
National documents are also necessary for one to access services such as education, employment, social grants, opening of bank accounts, and getting event study loans,” she stressed.
Kalo emphasized that acquiring national documents provides statistical data that assists the government with the creation of policies and planning at both national and international levels.
She urged the public to use the mass civil registration outreach program to obtain national documents.
