As I have said, hon member, there are 1 445 health facilities in country where birth is takes place. At the moment, only 391 have been fitted with facilities to issue birth certificates because it is done sporadically. This year, after my Budget Speech, we
met with the Ministry of Health. We got the list of all the 1 445 hospitals which we divided into five categories. In cases of the biggest ones, where more than 5000 babies are born per annum, they will have a fulltime Home Affairs official, whose job will be to issue birth certificates. In those facilities where there are less than 500 babies born per annum, they will keep on getting visits by a Home Affairs official. The process that we have started will only be completed by 2021 where all the 1 445 hospitals will have been covered so that the issue of 30 days no longer affects them.
The issue of taking an ID is done at 16 years. It becomes easier when you already have a birth certificate. There won't be any form of corruption where people come and claim that these and that are their parents; they were born in such and such a place when it is actually not true. That's why we believe that the root cause of this problem is not having a birth certificate. We have already started that but last month when we were consulting people for the new marriage policy, in my meeting with religious leaders; a religious sector told me that in terms of their religion, their women aren't
allowed to give birth in a hospital. So, we mustn't expect them to a birth certificate. I said I will meet with them; I won't force them to change their religion but will force them that it is their responsibility that if they don't give birth at the hospital immediately the baby is born, it is their job to go and get a birth certificate because we have them in hospitals where they didn't go. Thank you.