JSIF Partners With RGD to Provide Birth Certificates

The Registrar General’s Department (RGD) has partnered with the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) to provide birth certificates to residents of 18 communities across the country.

The project was scheduled to end in March, but an addendum was signed by both entities on April 11 to extend it until June 30, 2018.

Minister without Portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister, Hon. Mike Henry, said the objective of the initiative was to enhance access to basic urban infrastructure and services, and contribute towards increased community safety in selected economically vulnerable and socially volatile inner-city communities locally.

Mr. Henry was making his contribution to the 2018/19 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on June 27.

It was proposed that more than 4,000 persons would benefit from the project.

The RGD has the mandate to conduct civil registration in Jamaica. It has a 130-year background, and now captures some 98 per cent of all births in the country.

With the introduction of the first-free certificate concept, it is noticeable that children are being registered immediately, which results in the establishment of identity from birth.

Other similarly focused projects and general initiatives have been or are being pursued in the drive for the RGD to continue to improve on its service delivery.