Dr. Patricia Holness, CEO of the Registrar General's Department (RGD), reads from the 'Names for your Babies!' booklet at the RGD's press briefing to launch phase two of the 'Name the Child Project' at the Terra Nova Hotel in St. Andrew, yesterday. - Ricardo Makyn/Staff Photographer
The Registrar General's Department (RGD) is on a drive to register some 6,000 'nameless' children who were born between September 2004 and December 2006.
Dr. Patricia Holness, chief executive officer of the RGD, said yesterday at the launch of the 'Name the Child Project', held at the Terra Nova All Suite Hotel in St. Andrew, that Article Seven of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, stipulates that every child has the right to be immediately registered after birth.
Dr. Holness also said that under the U.N. Convention, every child also has the right to a name and nationality.
"As we are aware, Jamaica is signatory to this bill of rights. It is, therefore, the mandate of the RGD to ensure that civil registration is effectively captured in Jamaica," Dr. Holness said.
Mothers' names to be published
The names of mothers whose children have not been registered at the RGD are published in today's Gleaner. These mothers are being asked to visit the relevant RGD office to get their children registered. Under this new phase, the RGD will reduce the late-entry fee from $2,100 to $500.
Last year, the RGD attempted to register some 18,000 children under phase one of the project. These children were born between January 2003 and August 2004. More than 12,000 children were registered during phase one.
Under phase two of the project, some 6,872 children are expected to be named.
At the same time, Dr. Holness said that since the introduction in January of the 'free birth certificate initiative', some 17,000 certificates have been issued to parents of children born up to June 2007.
Dr. Holness gave the assurance that "by 2017, every child sitting the government placement exam will be equipped with a birth certificate."
