ISLAMABAD: National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) decided to engage NGOs, particularly those working for women rights to have most of the women folks on national database not registered earlier.
In this regard a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed on Tuesday between NADRA and Aurat Foundation (AF) through which the foundation facilitate unregistered women of the country in acquisition of computerised national identity card (CNIC).
Tariq Malik, Deputy Chairman NADRA, signed the MoU on behalf of his organisation while Naeem Mirza, Chief Operating Officer, Aurat Foundation, signed on behalf of the foundation. Simi Kamal, Chief of Party from Aurat Foundation, Gareth Aiken, Country Representative from Asia Foundation, Younas Khalid, Director Monitoring Evaluation and Research from Aurat Foundation, Amena Raja, Objective Manager Aurat Foundation, and Bushra Jafar, Deputy Chief of the Party Asia Foundation, and senior officials of NADRA attended the ceremony.
Under the agreement, the Aurat Foundation would help NADRA in running public awareness campaign for encouragement of women folks who have not been registered on national database so far. Aurat Foundation will provide grants through competitive process to local NGOs and CBOs, who will, in turn, mobilise their resources to achieve the objective in close coordination with NADRA.
“In the past three years NADRA has increased women registration by 74 percent, however, we need to reach out to more women and that is why we have approached the NGOs to help facilitate women in obtaining the CNIC”, said Tariq Malik while addressing the ceremony held at NADRA headquarters regarding the signing of the agreement.
Elaborating the NADRA strategy for increase in women registration, Tariq Malik said that CNIC will enable women to access their social, economic and political rights. NADRA has already registered 92 per cent population of the country by issuing 86 million CNICs out of which 37 million women have been registered so far, he added.
Malik hoped that Aurat Foundation would help NADRA to register the remaining women, especially in far-flung and marginalised areas, where registering them is a challenge for NADRA due to lack of awareness about their rights and CNIC benefits.
NADRA has decided to sent female-staffed mobile units to register female population of the selected districts, Malik said, adding that NADRA may waive some conditions of documentation for eligible deserving citizens under the applicable law for processing of their CNIC applications if needed, however, NADRA will ensure strict verification of the credentials of the citizens to ensure that database authenticity is not compromised. 
Source: Business Recorder
Date:7/20/2011
