NIDS for rollout by year end, says Morris Dixon

WESTERN BUREAU:

Senator Dr Dana Morris Dixon, says the long-awaited National Identification System (NIDS) should be officially launched by the end of 2024.

Dixon, minister without portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister and whose portfolio includes responsibility for information, skills, and digital transformation, made the announcement in an interview with The Gleaner following Wednesday’s 27th annual East Central St James Scholarship and Welfare Fund’s tertiary scholarship awards ceremony at the Iberostar Hotel in Rose Hall, St James.

“What is happening now is that the operational elements of NIDS are being finalised, so the software that is being used is being tested very robustly,” said Dixon. “The post offices are going to be our NIDS enrolment sites, and those are being renovated as we speak and, once those are ready then we can really start rolling out. We are hoping for it to happen before the end of the year.”

“In terms of the NIDS programme, we had the National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA) board that was established. What we are doing now is recruiting the top layer for that organisation. For example, you have to have a head of security in terms of information security, as well as the chief technology officer and chief executive officer posts, and we are now about to advertise for those top positions in NIRA,” continued Dixon.

RIGHT LEADERSHIP AND TEAM

NIDS, an electronic form of identification, is expected to provide a comprehensive and secure database for capturing and storing the personal information of Jamaican citizens and non-nationals, who have lived in Jamaica continuously for six months or more.

The government had previously announced that the first phase of NIDS’ enrolment and the issuing of national identification cards would take place during the 2024/25 financial year. It said it would be done through a $1.3-billion allocation for the National Identification for Economic Growth Project.

Dixon also told The Gleaner that while anticipation for NIDS’ launch is high, every precaution must be taken to ensure that the programme’s rollout is done smoothly.

“I think we are in pretty good stead on the technology front, and we are doing well in terms of the renovation of the post offices, and the last step is having the leadership team to drive everything going forward. For something this fundamental, you want to get it right. You have one chance to launch it, and you want to launch it right and have all the pieces working,” said Dixon.

“You have some people who are worried about it, ‘what does it mean, is my information secure?’ When you launch, you want to make sure that everything is good and that you have all of the infrastructure in place, and that you have the right leadership and team, and that is what we are making sure of right now,” added Dixon.

The rollout of NIDS has been stonewalled by citizens’ scepticism over enrolling into the system, as well as a 2019 ruling by the Jamaican Supreme Court that aspects of the National Identification and Registration Act violated the Constitution. The act was later passed in the House of Representatives in 2021.