Mogadishu identification card centre overwhelmed with applicants
Hundreds of Somali citizens stand in long queues every day at the only centre in Mogadishu that issues national identification cards, and more often than not, one will hear complaints about the difficulty and length of time it takes to get through the process.
The centre recently opened on December 23rd at the site of the old port in Abdulaziz district.
To help cater to the high demand, the Benadir regional administration said it plans to open additional centres elsewhere in Mogadishu, but cautions it will take time to set them up.
“We are aware that the ID issuance centre we have opened is heavily congested and that more than 500 people come to the centre each day,” Benadir administration spokesperson Mohamed Yusuf told Sabahi. “We are planning to open other centres in the other districts of Mogadishu, but we are still thinking about the appropriate time to open them.”
He said the federal government plans to have operational centres in every Somali district by the end of 2014.
“Opening other centres is not a task that can be completed in a day or two,” he said. “There has to be a streamlined process with all the agencies involved in data management and the issuance of ID cards able to work together through one computer system.”
The biometric identification card is required for citizens who wish to obtain a new Somali passport. It is also required to purchase land and cars, open bank accounts, register for university, travel within Somalia by plane, and prove one’s identity at security checkpoints throughout the city.
Initially, the identification card cost $10.50, plus another $5 to acquire the accompanying official birth certificate. Starting January 2014, the cost has increased by $2. Anyone who wants an ID is required to pay a fee of $17.50 directly through Dahabshiil or Salaam Bank.
Each applicant must provide fingerprints, pictures and undergo a criminal background check, Yusuf said. After submitting the required paperwork, they are asked to return in one week to pick up their documents.
But nearly no one receives their identification cards in that time frame. In fact, some of the people in line told Sabahi they had been waiting almost three weeks.
“Any new project encounters complaints. We are prepared to address the complaints and related criticisms,” Yusuf said.
In addition to the centre’s inability to meet the needs of all the applicants because of its limited number of employees, he said, people also experience delays because their information has to go through several agencies.
“Security agencies share this work with us and they have a right to summon and question any person whom they have suspicions about,” Yusuf said. “The security agencies also share [the responsibility] for delays with us. From our end, as the Benadir regional administration, we make the process easier for the public. Delays are not coming from us but are coming from the security agencies.”
Applicants complain of backlog
Abdi Muse, a 45-year-old owner of a clothing store in Hamar Weyne market, who was standing in a long queue at the centre, told Sabahi that he has been waiting for 17 days to receive his identification card.
“I have to receive an ID that proves I am a Somali citizen first before I can have the right to receive a passport or travel within the country when I want to take a plane,” said Muse, who travels regularly to visit two other stores he owns in Beledweyne and Galkayo. “Travelling by land is not safe because al-Shabaab still controls some areas in the country’s regions and I am afraid they will kill me if they see me with the ID.”
“I have no idea why I have not received the ID card,” he said.
Hodan district resident Maryan Ibrahim, a 38-year-old mother of six, said she was still waiting to receive her ID card after more than 19 days, even though she has fulfilled all the requirements.
“I wanted to use the ID to get a Somali passport so I can travel to Uganda for health reasons,” she said. “I can understand there are challenges due to the large number of people and the fact that there is only one centre to issue [cards]… [But] I am asking the Benadir regional administration and the Somali government to address this matter urgently and open other centres.”
For Jama Mohamed, a 22-year-old resident of Mogadishu’s Howlwadag district, the waiting game came to an end January 16th. He told Sabahi he applied for his identification card and birth certificate on December 27th but had to return to the centre and wait in line several times before his application was finally completed and his documents were issued.
“I am happy I received the ID. I did not receive it in the period I had planned, but when compared to the other people who applied at the same time as myself, I am very fortunate,” he said. “I am now planning to apply for a passport so I can travel to South Africa to help my brother who has a business there.”
Mohamed urged the government to quickly open additional centres where ID cards can be issued “so that the people who come after me do not waste a lot of time”.
sabahionline.com