Birth and death registration services to reach people’s doorsteps: Shahe Alam

The government is planning to revive the village government system at the grassroots level to make civic services more accessible and accurate for people in remote areas.

As part of the initiative, the government is considering operating birth and death registration services through the local administration to improve the accuracy and organisation of registration activities, said State Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Mir Shahe Alam.

He made the remarks as a special guest at an event marking National Birth and Death Registration Day at the Grand Ballroom of Hotel Sonargaon in the capital on Tuesday.

The state minister said errors and complications currently exist in the management of birth and death registration data.

“It is difficult to formulate proper plans without an accurate count of the country’s population. A reliable database is essential to assess food requirements, meet nutritional needs, implement child vaccination programmes and ensure other essential services,” he said.

Calling the birth registration certificate the first step towards establishing a child’s legal identity and rights, Shahe Alam said it establishes a child’s date and place of birth, parentage and nationality.

He said the government has decided to revive the village government system based on initiatives taken by former president Ziaur Rahman and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia.

He added that steps are being taken to formulate a new and modern village government law by integrating the laws related to village government enacted in 1980 and 2003.

Under the proposed system, powers and responsibilities will be delegated to the ward and union parishad levels, bringing birth and death registration services closer to people at the grassroots, he said.

“This will reduce public suffering in accessing services and help prevent fake and duplicate entries in the database,” the state minister added.

He further said the government has already taken initiatives to introduce a ‘One Citizen, One ID’ system and digital wallets for every citizen.

At the same time, the Bangladesh Birth and Death Registration Information System (BDRIS) is being redesigned, he said.

“BDRIS is the primary system for the birth and death registration initiative. If the information in this system is inaccurate, the government’s broader initiative will face serious challenges,” Shahe Alam said.