The CENI (Independent National Electoral Commission), the INS (National Institute of Statistics) and the ONIP (National Office for the Identification of the Population) signed, this Thursday, June 09, 2023, a memorandum of understanding which will allow the establishment of a general population file in the Democratic Republic of Congo, in accordance with the Government’s 2021-2023 action program. The necessary equipment (enrolment devices, cartographic data and collection equipment), which was used for electoral enrollment operations, was transferred to the two other institutions to implement shared operations of enrolment, identification and population census. This will result in the production of the national identity card for all Congolese citizens.
Prime Minister Jean-Michel Sama Lukonde presided over the signing ceremony of the memorandum of understanding in the presence of some members of the Government, the Office of the President of the Republic, the President of CENI, the Directors General of ONIP and INS, as well as members of the pooling technical committee.
It should be noted that since 1984, the Democratic Republic of Congo has no longer carried out a scientific census of the population. This process, which represents a major challenge, will soon be taken up thanks to the pooling of enrollment, identification and population census operations.
The Head of Government hailed the determination of the President of the Republic Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo for his leadership and his promise to provide each citizen with a national identity card, while calling on all stakeholders in this process to redouble their efforts. ardor with a view to completing it and meeting its objectives.
This signature is an important step for the Democratic Republic of Congo which, thanks to this device, will be able to save the financial means that the Government of the Republic should spend to carry out these operations, and offer a reliable identity card to its population, while by producing reliable statistics of its demography