Officials tell residents to report births, deaths

HUYE – Population officials in Huye, Gisagara and Nyaruguru districts are urging people to keenly register newly born children and residents who have died. The officers made the call on Thursday during a workshop on the role of population officers at sector levels. The workshop was co-organised by the Ministry’s of Justice, Local Government and the National Institute of Statistics. According to the officials, a big number of residents do not register newly born children and do not report deaths of their kin, which leads to errors in tabulating population statistics. “Residents often delay to register their children, and some even do not do it at all. This affects our basic data”, said Jules Habumugisha, the Executive Secretary of Nyagisozi sector, Nyaruguru district. During the workshop, Michel Ndakize Rugambwa, the officer in-charge of statistics in the National Statistics Institute, noted that when the census is done accurately at local level it serves as a source of data that the national body in charge of statistics refers to while conducting the national census. “The general census should be conducted after longer periods of time, as it is for instance in developed countries. This national census should serve as a verification of the statistics provided by population officers at the local level”, Rugambwa said. The workshop was intended to build the capacity of the participants to handle challenges in their work. Christine Umurerwa, the officer in-charge of legal affairs in the Ministry of Justice, said such training would enable authorities to do their job according to the legal guidelines. Ends