According to Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, all is prepared for the historic issuance of National Identification numbers, also known as Ghana Card numbers, to newborn babies in Ghana.
This comes after the databases of the Ghana Health Service, the National Identification Authority, and the Births and Deaths Registry were successfully integrated.
The first such Ghana Card number was assigned to a newborn baby on Friday, July 21, 2023, following a successful test run of the system, according to the Vice President, who made the announcement on Saturday, July 22, 2023.
“The work of integrating the databases has been completed, The full test was done yesterday, and I am happy to say that the first Ghana Card number for a baby was issued yesterday.”
“So in the next month or two, all babies born in Ghana, once they take them to Weigh In, will be issued the Ghana Card number and also get their Birth Certificate Identification number at the same time, because the two databases are talking to each other. The nationality of the parents will be established as part of the process.”
“This is very transformational,” Dr Bawumia noted, explaining that they will have these numbers from the time they are babies till they pass away.
According to National Identification Authority (NIA) officials, cards with biometrics and other data would be issued to children after their digits and other traits are fully formed.
Speaking at the 75th Anniversary celebrations of Ghana National College in Cape Coast, Dr Bawumia emphasized that the issuance of ID numbers at birth was an important part of the government’s ongoing digitalization agenda, which was designed to prepare the nation to fully participate in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
The Ghana Card is increasingly being used as a single source of identification, with the unique number fulfilling many functions such as Social Security, Health Insurance, and Tax Identification.
Ghana National University
Vice President Bawumia praised the contribution Ghana National College has made to pre- and post-colonial life in Ghana and urged administrators, teachers, and students in educational institutions to seize the opportunities presented by artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance instruction, problem-solving, and critical thinking, noting that it could be effectively used to close the gap between the developed and developing worlds.
Ghana National University
“If we are in agreement that the boys and girls in our schools today are being trained to compete on the global stage, there is every justification for our students to be given exposure to AI.
“Government’s ongoing digitalization agenda is ample testimony of its appreciation of AI and the commitment to ensure that this country is not left behind.”
“We have focused on pursuing digitalisation as part of our economic strategy because the Fourth Industrial Revolution is upon us and we must be part of the modern world.”
“Whilst Government will do its part by leading the charting of a pathway to the deployment of meaningful AI in our national life, I expect our educational authorities to devise and deploy innovative teaching strategies that factor in ICT as a key ingredient,” he added.
