The Ministry of Home Affairs, Immigration, Safety and Security (MHAISS), in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), has begun its public awareness and engagement campaign in the Omaheke Region.
This is as Namibia prepares for the introduction of its new electronic identity cards, known as e-IDs.
The e-ID system is expected to be rolled out in September 2026 as part of Namibia's efforts to modernise its civil registration system, strengthen identity security, and improve access to digital services.
The campaign, which will be conducted on 27 July to 5 August 2026, will cover all seven constituencies in the region.
It is aimed at educating and informing communities about the new identity system, how it will work, and what citizens need to know ahead of its implementation.
"In partnership with the Ministry of Home Affairs, Immigration, Safety, and Security, our purpose, UNDP Namibia, is to support our government in the development of gender from a technical perspective, developing the necessary infrastructure around the E-ID in Namibia. And most importantly, citizens have a trail and have, as a result of the E-ID, the ability to go back to the ministry and identify who has used or accessed my information," states the Civic Engagement Analyst at UNDP, Geraldine Itana.
Leading the delegation is the ministry's Deputy Executive Director and Chief Registrar, Jackson Wandjiva, who says, "Namibia has what we call a national population register, where our information is stored as citizens. And that information is especially like the information that is carried on the IT card, which would be accessed by institutions through your consent as the owner of the card. The information, personal information, is with us. It's in Namibia; it's not anywhere else. It's on our system. And for one to access that information, you need to give your consent as the owner of the card."
Beyond serving as proof of identity, the electronic identity card is designed to support a more integrated and efficient public service system.
Digital ID and e-Governance Specialist at UNDP, Debashis Nag, adds, "It brings convenience in terms of your life to access different public services. So, for example, if you wanted to go to services at different ministries, you might have to carry different IDs or different cards to them. But when you have a single e-ID with you. So using this single ID, you can access all the services across all the platforms."