The Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Hon. Ahmed Ibrahim has announced plans to establish new birth and death registration centres across the country while refurbishing and upgrading existing offices currently in poor condition.
Speaking at a retreat meeting of the Birth and Death Registry in Accra, the Minister outlined a series of initiatives aimed at strengthening the agency’s operations and improving service delivery nationwide.
According to him, efforts are underway to establish a permanent National Head Office for the Birth and Death Registry. Additionally, the Ministry is working to procure vehicles and motorbikes to enhance the mobility and efficiency of registration officers, particularly in remote and hard-to-reach communities.
Recognising the critical role of technology in modern service delivery, Mr. Ibrahim disclosed that the Ministry will support the Acting Registrar of Births and Deaths in acquiring 2,000 tablets.
“It is envisaged that these tablets will enable real-time data collection and registration of births and deaths, thereby improving the accuracy and timeliness of our records,” he said.
Mr. Ibrahim emphasised that decentralisation remains a key priority of President Mahama’s administration.
“A credible and well-structured Birth and Death Registry at the district and community levels is essential to empower grassroots governance. We must go further by ensuring that the data collected at the local level is timely, accurate, and useful for planning,” he noted.
The Acting Registrar of Births and Deaths, Mr. Samuel Adom-Botchway reiterated the Registry’s mission to provide accurate, reliable, and timely data across all 16 regions to support national socio-economic development.
He highlighted progress made through the digitisation of the registration system and stressed the Registry’s crucial role in national development by providing essential data for policy formulation.
Mr. Adom-Botchway also urged staff and management to support him in delivering his mandate effectively.
For the first time, the annual retreat was attended by key high-ranking officials including the Deputy Minister, Hon. Rita Naa Odoley Sowah, Alhaji Amin Abdul-Rahaman (Chief Director of the Ministry), Mr. Michael Harry Yamson (Administrator, District Assemblies Common Fund), and all 16 Regional Registrars along with their deputies.
Story by Osman Issah Abadoo
