NIRA Explains Delay In Mass National Registration Exercise – The Kampala Report

The National Identification Registration Authority (NIRA) has yet to confirm dates for the mass registration exercise for new national identity cards.

NIRA Executive Director, Rosemary Kisembo says the Authority can not announce when the registration will start until when it has received the registration equipment.

To address the gap of unregistered citizens, NIRA proposed a mass registration exercise before the end of this year. The two-month exercise was initially set to start in early June but was delayed.

Kisembo told journalists at Uganda Media Center that project initiation activities commenced on July 29th. “There are eight key items that we need to arrive in the country: the data center, registration kits, card printing equipment, blank cards, and the completion of system customization. These are the items on the critical path,” she added.

She said NIRA was supposed to submit the register to the Electoral Commission by November 30, 2024. The Electoral Commission recently announced the election roadmap for the next elections. The program included dates for the display of the register.

Kisembo said whoever seeks to participate in the 2026 electoral process must be registered during the upcoming registration exercise.

“Even before we start the new process, we encourage those who want to be part of the 2026 voting process to get an ID now, especially those who have never registered or are just turning 18,” she said.

She urged Ugandans to embrace early childhood with registration. She emphasized that parents shouldn’t wait until schools ask for birth certificates but should make it a practice, easing the authority’s currently tedious operations.

By law, every Ugandan is entitled to a national identification number irrespective of their age. The only exception is the card, which is given to those who have attained 16 years and above.

“The ideal period would be a month after birth, and when matters worsen, it should not exceed a year at most,” said Kisembo.

Kisembo revealed that only 27.4 million Ugandans are registered on the government registry. The recent housing and population census estimated the country’s population at 45.9 million people.