e-Population

Introduction

Registrar General’s Department is responsible for the registration of birth, deaths and marriage. The entry records are maintained manually and are not readily accessible to other government agencies, thus resulting in a duplication of effort, time and costs. e-population is introduced to achieve objectives of issuing a unique personal identification Number (PIN) at birth for all citizens, building a consolidated set of basic information of every citizen of Sri Lanka, creating an efficient and reliable life events registration system, increasing the information sharing with government institutions using the population Register, providing more extensive analytical capability in relation to demographics and health statistics and increasing in coverage of recording life events. While e- population system fulfilling these objectives it gives the benefits to ensure accuracy of data from parent’s confirmation, perform searching and issuance of certificate copies from any Divisional Secretary Office, reduced need of translations, usable even in foreign countries, maintain current information of citizens, share information of citizens between the institutions.

e-Population Project

Provisions has been provided for registration of a birth or a death by hand writing by Registration of Births and Deaths Act, No.17 of 1951 .However, there are spelling errors, written errors can be seen in many birth or death certificates when registration of a birth or a death in hand writing. As such, specially after making alternation in a birth certificate, when it is visible in the birth certificate, it is often an oppressive experience to the holder of the certificate

Similarly, as the information on registration of births, marriages and deaths are not entered in a data system, it has to be deployed more time and labour for exchanging information on births, marriages and deaths. An ability to take proper advantage from the same information also has been blocked thereof.

It has been commenced the e-population programme by the Register General’s Department under the technical guidance of the Sri Lanka Information and Communication Technology Agency for the preparation of data system including information on civil registration and information on updating under the programme of Reconstruction of Public Sector which has been commenced based on this matter.

Method of Implementation

The information in the declaration submitted by the parents in the registration of a birth will be entered into the e-population document system by the officers of the District Registrar Division of the Divisional Secretariat. Confirmation of data will be done by sending the data sheet which is included the entered  information,  to the parents .After that, issuance of the national birth certificate with the Sri Lankan identity number of the person/ my number through the data system is  carried out. Obtaining of the same Sri Lankan identity number/ my number through the Department for  Registration of   Persons will be carried out.

The special characters included in the national birth certificate expected to be issued through the said data system are as follows.

• A unitary identity number as “ My number” will be issued for each birth and  as it is generated with the collaboration of the Department for Registration of Persons , will be able to use this number as the National Identity card number in the future.
• As this certificate is issued with the signature of the Registrar General, it is named as National Birth Certificate .
• As this birth certificate is issued in Sinhala/English or Tamil/English languages, it can be used internationally.
• As  an immediate response code is included in the certificate, avoiding of  including fraud information/make distortions 
• Receiving much recognition as it is being printed in a paper with special protective components .

Accordingly, a population document will be built relating to Sri Lankans through  maintaining  a citizen information system which is certified officially and updated and as those information can be  exchanged among Public Institutions  , the efficiency in public sector will be increased by it.