Amendments are to be made to the Civil Registration Act to modernise the identity verification process for persons seeking to procure a birth certificate.

Floyd Green, minister without portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM), who made the disclosure, said the amendments will seek to address the challenges that people face in verifying their identity.

“We are moving to change our Civil Registration Act. What we do have is a very old Act, so a lot of the processes are developed around that Act. What we have seen in modern legislation is that it is a little easier for you to identify somebody and get a birth certificate. We are moving in that direction. That won’t happen before next year,” the minister pointed out.

Green was answering questions from callers during the Nationwide News radio segment, ‘Ask the Minister’, on Tuesday (May 2).

Noting that persons seeking to procure this document encounter significant challenges, the Minister said it is intended that the amended act will assist in overcoming difficulties associated with this process.

Green explained that the National Identification System (NIDS) ‘Operation Birthright’ project, will be used to address some of these challenges.

The initiative provides identity registration support to access a birth certificate for needy Jamaicans who are without birth certificates or other legal and physical identification documents.