Get facts, concerns and recommendations for building a rights-respecting national ID system for all Jamaicans. Brought to you by the NIDS Focus Coalition.
A National Identification System (or NIDS) creates and verifies legal documents that uniquely identify individuals, allowing them to prove to service providers, in a secure, reliable way, that they are who they claim to be.
Having a legal identity is a basic human right. A legal identity allows you to access basic social benefits such as health care and education, as well as services such as banking.
The IDs and other identity documents currently available in Jamaica were each created for specific purposes. People need to meet particular requirements (which can come with extra costs) to get these IDs. Moreover, because each ID is so specific, multiple IDs often have to be used together to access services. The systems that support these IDs don’t talk to each other, and were built with the intention that these IDs would be used in-person.
Compared to changing the existing systems, there is more value for money in creating a new, general purpose system that is accessible and affordable for more people, and allows both in-person and digital services to be more efficient.
NIDS could boost Jamaica’s development in a number of ways. NIDS is expected to lead to less fraud, more successful criminal convictions, more access to financial services, and better online services. All these are possible, but we need to ensure that we can enjoy these benefits without causing unintended harm.
The NIDS Bill, or the National Identification and Registration Act (NIRA), sets out the legal responsibilities and limits for the National Identification System. The Bill was first tabled and passed in 2017, but was struck down by the Supreme Court. The Court found that the 2017 Bill unjustifiably breached Jamaicans’ rights to privacy, and equality, among others. Now, a revised version of the Bill has been tabled, and the public has a better chance to review it and have concerns about it addressed before it is passed into law. Many groups, including the NIDS Focus Coalition, have already been contributing to the public review process.
NIDS is being designed today, but it will potentially last for generations. We must take great care to ensure the Bill includes powerful and lasting principles that protect the rights and institutions that we hold dear.
Wednesday
2021
A meeting of the JSC and NIDS technical team as they review and finalize proposed amendments to the NIRA Act 2020 before submission to parliament.
Tuesday
2021
A meeting of the JSC and NIDS technical team as they review and finalize proposed amendments to the NIRA Act 2020 before submission to parliament.
Thursday
2021
A meeting of the JSC and NIDS technical team as they review and finalize proposed amendments to the NIRA Act 2020 before submission to parliament.
Is there an issue or recommendation we overlooked in the review we submitted to Parliament? Have questions about the issues? Take a look and let us know.
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NIDS Focus is a coalition of civil society groups and individuals collaborating with the GOJ to develop a rights-based, people-centric national ID project. Learn more
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© NIDS Focus Coalition 2021