While the COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant delays in the distribution of birth certificates by the General Register Office (GRO), the department has promised that it would improve its rate of distribution by the end of this month.
According to Registrar-General Raymon Cummings, GRO is currently printing about 500 certificates daily, all of which were received in June.
“Our distribution is a little behind and should catch up with the rate of production by the end of September 2021,” he said.
Cummings’ statement followed a letter published in Tuesday’s edition of the Stabroek News. The letter stated that persons who visit the GRO daily to apply for or uplift documents especially birth and marriage certificates, often leave disappointed, noting that in most cases they are told that the documents will be posted or that they are not yet processed.
Further, the author stated that he/she applied two weeks ago for three birth certificates with the expectation that they would be ready for retrieval after seven days but was told by the clerk that the normal time was six weeks but due to the prevailing circumstances, it would be longer.
Cummings went on to state that since assuming the position as Registrar General at the end of 2020, he immediately began making assessments of what should be done to improve services provided by the GRO. He said it was made known to him that the department was not producing certificates when the COVID-19 pandemic hit Guyana last year and was even closed for a short period. This resulted in a backlog of printing and distributing certificates.
In order to improve services, he added, a website has since been created along with Facebook and Instagram pages and a WhatsApp account to allow for safe interaction between staff and members of the public.
“There is no excuse for the seemingly long delays in posting out the certificates applied for; however, [having an] understanding [of] the realities faced by the department can perhaps assist persons to reduce the waiting time. Further, we have had a number of stops or delays due to staff becoming infected with Covid-19 and having to initiate the necessary protocols,” he added.
Cummings further added that the issues now being addressed by the GRO are the slow pace at which certificates are being delivered and the processing of new births and deaths and changes or corrections to the official records which can only be done at the Head Office at this time.
The Registrar General subsequently advised that persons who are experiencing long delays may need to check with the office using GRO social media accounts as there may be issues with their records that may need clarity or corrections.
Persons applying for certificates can assist by providing as much information as possible on the application forms and ensuring that the address provided is clear. Anyone wishing to contact GRO using WhatsApp can send their messages to (592) 610-9394.
