NIDS regulations for September debate
Published:Saturday | July 15, 2023 | 12:08 AM
THE NATIONAL Identification System (NIDS) regulations are to be brought to Parliament in September for debate and passage.
This was announced yesterday by minister without portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for skills and digital transformation, Senator Dr Dana Morris Dixon.
In her contribution to the State of the Nation Debate in the Upper House, Morris Dixon said that the NIDS regulation will pave the way for the government to roll out digital identification.
At the same time, the minister who has been given the task to drive digital transformation, said that steps are being made to modify 23 additional post offices to be used as the National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA) enrolment sites.
She said that the government has since published a request for proposals to modify 10 post offices for enrolment sites, similar to the already modified Central Sorting Office, the country’s main post office.
“These National Identification and Registration Authority enrolment sites will co-exist in specially designated spaces without interfering with the services of the post offices,” she said.
Morris Dixon said that the projects to modify the post offices would attract capital investments to the Jamaica Post that it has not seen for more than 40 years.
“We invite the public to visit the Central Sorting Office on South Camp Road to see the model that will be extended to over 23 additional post offices in parish capitals and towns,” she encouraged.
By next month, the government will publish a request for proposals for an additional 10 post offices, Morris Dixon added.
She said the Government will also modify three additional post offices in Kingston to expand enrolment coverage.
An electronic form of identity, the NIDS will provide a comprehensive and secure database for capturing and storing the personal information of Jamaicans and non-nationals ordinarily resident in the country.