THE process to complete the digitisation of records at the General Registrar’s Office (GRO) should be completed soon, and then obtaining a birth, death or marriage certificate would become easier.

Minister of Citizenship, Winston Felix, told the Government Information Agency (GINA) that the process, which started this year, should be completed soon.

Records at the GRO for the period 1987 to the present are to be put in a digital format that would make search and retrieval easier and faster, GINA reported Monday.

According to Felix, the digitisation process will also enable the GRO to secure records for much longer periods, and under safer conditions.
Meanwhile, the ministry is awaiting approval for additional consultancy services that would see the GRO being computerised to handle the digitised records.

“I’m awaiting a report from the E-Government’s department, because they did another bid. The bids have just been assessed, and I think out of this project, contractors will be identified soon; so I’m just awaiting that report,” Felix said.

NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS
For years, there have been numerous complaints about the slow delivery of services by the GRO, but Felix assured GINA that the government is working towards the delivery of better service to citizens.

Earlier this year, it was reported that Guyana is to benefit from technical assistance to modernise its visas regime and remittances scheme under the African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP)–European Union (EU) Migration Action plan.

Minister Felix said that the Ministry of Citizenship will re-engage the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) to recommence the entire project, as there were some difficulties with the private contractors who were sourced by IOM.

“Something went out of line of our expectation, so that project seems hazy somewhere along the line. I have asked IOM for us to re-engage, and they have promised some action in that regard,” Felix said.