The minister interacting with some people at the Births and Deaths Registry
THE MINISTER for Local Government Decentralization and Rural Development, Martin Adjei Mensah, has paid a working visit to the Births and Deaths Registry and the Department of Parks and Gardens, agencies under the ministry.
At the Births and Deaths Registry, Head of the Statistics and Evaluation Unit, Constance Clara Anani, said the agency was commencing the registration of babies from zero to 12 months across all districts nationwide in a mop up mass registration exercise.
This, she explained, was part of efforts to enable them register babies whose name and details are not yet duly entered in the records of the Registry adding that her outfit had targeted an estimated 30,000 babies to be registered under the exercise.
To make the exercise easily accessible to all persons, Madam Anani explained that personnel of the Registry in all districts nationwide would be moving out of their offices to community centers, market places to ensure that no baby is left is behind.
The minister told journalists that with the Registry having data spanning as far back as 1929, his visit was to inspect how the Information Technology (IT) department was managing their operations, insisting that, “My visit is to reinforce that we don’t lose data.”
He assured that with the Registry being a critical government sector, there was the need for some government intervention and investment, “so that they can properly house the data and then give better services.
At the Department of Parks of Gardens, Director Kinsford Adams, informed the minister and his entourage that the main challenge facing the Department is the encroachment of lands belonging to the Department by individuals who claim they had bought those lands.
The minister, in his response, told journalists that the ministry was not aware of any land belonging to the Department sold to any private estate developer.
“This land belongs to the states”, he iterated. “We are not aware of any decision otherwise. The director of the parks and gardens is fully on grounds assuring that this land that belongs to the States is fully protected.”
BY Nii Adjei Mensahfio