Letter of the Day | Be practical with digital solutions
Published:Friday | January 19, 2024 | 12:05 AM
THE EDITOR, Madam:
Nadine Barrett-Maitland, in a letter to the editor, questioned if Jamaica is ready for digitalisation. We know that digitalisation is dependent on reliable systems, technology and trust. Take, for instance, the national identification system (NIDS); it has been almost seven years since we first heard of plans to implement it. The controversial system with biometric data was supposed to be mandatory, with punitive fines for non-compliance. NIDS was stalled by the courts, which ruled that elements of the law were unconstitutional. NIDS was revised and will now be voluntary, although it will obviously be enforced for some groups. The public was informed that J$1.96 billion was allocated in the current Budget; we anxiously await the outcomes.
NIDS is based on a national ID system used in Estonia, a country with about half of Jamaica’s population, yet it generates three times our gross domestic product. We can’t copy systems that work in these places and expect the same outcomes, without consideration for our many differences, some of which are cultural. I personally have no problem with a national identity system to facilitate improving government services and efficiencies; my argument has always been that it would be better to upgrade tax registration number (TRN) system, which is already in place and working, and link the TRN to other documents to improve efficiencies in government agencies especially. Most Jamaicans have a TRN, it is required for government services and banking. It makes no sense to have TRN existing alongside NIDS; I believe NIDS will also capture TRN, which is a duplication of systems.
In the USA and Canada, unique numbers are assigned to individuals for social identity, and this drives social services, taxation, photo IDs, banking, etc. This is how we should’ve approached national identity – to follow individuals until they die. We already have several forms of renewable photo IDs. I am thinking about elderly pensioners, who must submit quarterly life certificates signed by a justice of the peace or qualifying officer to show that the person is still alive, otherwise pensions will abruptly stop, causing inconvenience. Many pensioners are poor, some are incapacitated and live in remote areas. The TRN captured on a death certificate should be enough to flag updates to other systems. The Government says that NIDS will be the solution to eliminate pension certificates, but this means that NIDS will be mandatory for pensioners – even if it is voluntary for others – an extra step for seniors, considering that NIDS is renewable every few years.
Digitalisation and modernisation is the way forward, but we must be practical with solutions to problems and look for simple, cost-effective methods which are in line with budget constraints.
P. CHIN