While the number of people signing up for the digital Trident ID card continues to grow, the pace of collection has slowed significantly with about 90 000 of them still uncollected.
Minister of Industry, Innovation, Science and Technology Davidson Ishmael gave that update on Wednesday as he pleaded with Barbadians who registered to collect their new IDs and those who have not yet signed up to do so, given that the current plastic cards will be invalid in two months.
“Right now we have, unfortunately, about 90 000 cards that are sitting at various centres all across the island and I am encouraging and appealing, and even begging the people of Barbados – if you know you applied for your national digital ID card and you have not heard any call or received any correspondence relative to collecting it, call into the Electoral and Boundaries Commission (EBC) at the various numbers and see if your card is ready,” he said.
“We are encouraging, on top of that, the rest of Barbadians to go through the registration process so that they can have their cards in their hands as soon as possible as well.”
Between October 2022 and January 2023, close to 30 000 residents signed up for the ID cards, bringing the total number of applicants to just over 167 000 since registration started in July last year.
In his brief update, Ishmael told members of the media that he was satisfied with the rollout of the $10.4 million project which is providing residents with more secure and durable IDs.
“I am happy to say that we have cleared a significant backlog that we would have had going into December,” he said.
Prior to the suspension of card collection at the end of November for one month, some residents who had signed up early complained about cards not being ready by the collection dates, while others lamented that they were unable to register online.
“We have worked through many of those challenges in 2022 and I am very satisfied with where we are right now. I believe that persons will not only be registered but have their cards shortly thereafter. So, I am encouraging and appealing to all Barbadians, to continue to get your card,” Minister Ishmael said.
“Those who have registered recently . . . may still have a slight delay in terms of getting their card. We are saying about three to four weeks on average, but we are expecting persons, if you think your delay has been too long, to call the EBC and follow up accordingly. We are trying to push these cards through as fast as possible and we are printing as people register.”
In relation to online registration, Ishmael said the technical challenges hindering that process had been almost fully rectified.
“I believe in short order – in the next couple of days – we are going to have a full solution to those problems and those persons who registered via the online registration portal, we will then be able to move them through the system and have their cards delivered to them soon as well,” he assured.
Ishmael said there would soon be additional features on the chip-and-PIN ID cards.
Officials are hoping to introduce a mobile application, Trident eID, which will link with the Trident ID card to allow users to prove their identity for online transactions and sign documents electronically. It is also hoped that people will be able to add selected personal information on the new digital ID in the future.
The Trident ID card, which contains drivers’ licence information, replaces the laminated paper ID which has basic information – the holder’s national registration number, name, sex, date of birth, nationality, height, as well as the date of issue of the ID and a signature.
They will not be valid after March 31, 2023. (MM)
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