MPs Call for More Decentralization of  ID Services.

Push For Easy Access to Social Protection Programs.

By Admin

The parliamentary forum on social protection has called on the government to scale up National Identity Card Services to the grassroots to enable more Ugandans, especially the elderly persons to access National IDs which are a key requirement in accessing Social Protection Programs like SAGE

They were addressing the press at parliament on elderly issues ahead of the International Day for Older Persons to be marked tomorrow.

The United Nations General Assembly designated October 1 as the International Day of Older Persons. As Uganda Joins the rest of the world to commemorate the day in National celebrations to take place in Nebbi district, Legislators on the Parliamentary forum on social protection have called on the government to decentralize National ID services to the grassroots levels to give elderly persons access to work out on identification issues which are delaying them to benefit from social protection programs like SAGE program.

While addressing a presser at Parliament led by Flavia Kabahenda the chairperson of the forum, MPs decried the huge cost of replacing a national ID and the cost of correcting errors on the ID which is way too high to afford yet the government is planning to rise it further.

The forum also wants the government to shift the headquarters of the National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA) from Kololo ceremonial grounds to another convenient premise that is easily accessible to Ugandans. They argue that the place is disadvantaged because it hosts a lot of national events and it’s sealed off from public use every now and then.

Meanwhile, the same legislators advocating for the welfare of elderly persons have implored the ministry of internal affairs to scrap off charges for Birth and Death certificates and provide them at a free cost to enable all Ugandans to access them with ease. Lawmakers claim that the two documents are so crucial to accessing government services but they are offered at a cost.