Monrovia, Liberia – The Roadmap for a Comprehensive Mass Enrollment of Citizens and Foreign Residents into the National Biometric Identification System (NBIS) has been formally launched by the Board of Registrars and Management of the National Identification Registry (NIR), operating under the Ministry of State for Presidential Affairs.
In addition to improving NBIS and feeding all databases, the event, which was formally inaugurated by President Joseph Boakai in Monrovia on May 2, 2024, aims to sustain a safe environment, good citizen welfare, and appropriate access to services.
A few months back, President Joseph N. Boakai declared that, in accordance with article 3.2(f) of the NIR act, his administration would fortify the NIR in order to develop the capacity required to be able to gather the comprehensive biometric data required to support all government agencies, including the National Elections Commission. In light of this, the NIR started the effort with assistance from other partners.
According to the NIR act, which established the NIR, one of the NIR’s primary responsibilities is to counsel and support the Liberian government and its agencies in enhancing and fortifying the gathering, storing, assessing, and safeguarding of data and records needed to register births, grant passports, and issue other identity documents.
Speaking at the official lunch of the event, The Executive Director at NIR, Andrews Peters, disclosed that the institution has enrolled a little over (700, 000) persons which is just approximately 14% of the population.
According to Mr. Peters, the reason for the low membership is the numerous difficulties that have impeded the NIR’s ability to operate logistically and with human resources throughout the years, as well as the lack of political will to need an ID card in order to access all services, both public and private.
In order to provide services to their employees, Mr. Peters added, many government agencies and institutions have established their own biometric ID systems in place of using the National Registry, which is Liberia’s foundational registry and has the authority to provide data for citizens and legal residents.
“We want to assure all of you today that we have a robust NBIS with a verification platform to authenticate card holders; and an Application Program Interface (API) to enhance linkages with all institutions, both public and private. With respect to our function as the national identification registry, our plan is for the new generations of Liberians to have their birth and identity records accurately recorded, and securely kept from their day of birth in the NBIS.”
He did, however, clarify that the Ministry of Health (MOH) is a partner in the process. The Enrollment at Birth initiative runs from the age of 0 to 5.
The NIR Director said, Liberia is one of few countries in the sub-region that have a system that can enroll people at this age. He further noted key challenges that the NIR faced currently, adding “Out of a total of 5.9million United States Dollars, the cost for building the NBIS. We are still indebted to our solution provider a little over 1.7million United States Dollars.”
He maintained that while it is a good thing to launch such an initiative, it is also important for the government to clear the debt in order to take ownership of the NBIS, and enhance the capacity of its technicians to manage it and prevent security risk to our national data system.
During President Boakai’s first State of the Nation Address on January 29, 2024, he, among other things, said “One of the vexing problems noted during the past elections was voter registration and the associated logistical problems, which tend to frustrate and anger voters and political parties.
Furthermore, that his administration will fortify the NIR in order to develop the necessary capabilities for obtaining the thorough biometry data required to provide all organizations, including the National Election Commission. The goal of the current democratic and good governance system being constructed, according to President Joseph N. Boakai, is to raise the living standards of the people of Liberia.
According to the Liberia Leader, the system will also contribute to the fight against crime by guaranteeing a high degree of security, efficiency, and accuracy all of which are desperately needed to reduce the possibility of identity theft and illegal access to services in both the public and private sectors.
In particular, the NBIS will help resolve problems with the voter registration system that have plagued past elections. It is for these reasons the government is pleased to strengthen the NIR to build the needed capacity that can capture the comprehensive biometric data required to feed all agencies, including the National Election Commission.
Reported by: Simeon S. Wiakanty
Contact: +231881538878
