Malawi national IDs project requires $3million
Malawi needs K 1.3 billion ($3 million) as down payment to roll out the national identity cards (IDs) project and a commitment for timely funding for the next three years of the project, it has been learnt.
Documents seen by The Nation show that 25 percent of the established posts in the National Registrations Bureau (NRB), the government agency rolling out the project, are vacant, a development that is further delaying the process.
Minister of Home Affairs and Internal Security Paul Chibingu confirmed the figures in an interview yesterday, but said government will, by the end of this year, ensure that the IDs are available to all Malawians.
Said the minister: “At the moment, we will be putting up adverts to find subcontractors to carry out this exercise or registering about eight to 10 million people. We are in the initial stages, but by the end of this year, it [the exercise] will have to be completed. We are also looking into the possibility of getting funding for this exercise.
“There is also the registration of 30 percent of those eligible for the IDs in Lilongwe, thereafter we will be setting up birth registration data centre at NRB and three district offices, then the registration of births in district hospitals and other health facilities in Chitipa, Ntcheu and Blantyre. Lastly, will be the issuance of 30 000 birth certificates to the registered births in the three districts.”
Chibingu further said NRB will provide up-to-date population bio-data through an efficient and effective registration process to foster positive identification of all bonafide Malawians and resident foreigners to achieve socio-economic development.
Malawi established NRB in 2007 to oversee the process of issuing national IDs.
Currently, Malawi is the only country in the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) bloc without national IDs, a development that has, among others, seen unscrupulous foreign nationals obtaining and abusing the country’s passport, for example.
Malawi Congress Party (MCP) president Lazarus Chakwera, who is also leader of opposition in Parliament, and leader of People’s Party (PP) in Parliament, Uladi Mussa, said the country needs urgently.
