Undocumented and stateless residents from Bravo Settlement in Kavango West got an opportunity to be registered by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Immigration, Safety and Security.
The initiative was held on Africa Civil Registration and Vital Statistics Day, usually celebrated on August 10 each year.
Africa Civil Registration and Vital Statistics Day is about increasing public awareness of the importance of the timely registration of vital events, particularly births and deaths.
A number of vulnerable communities living at Bravo find themselves without the necessary documentation.
"Our community here in Kavango West, many of them do not have national documents, which affects them negatively in terms of receiving social grants. I hope that by next year, we will not have such problems in this community. They are vulnerable, and they really need our assistance," explained Kavango West's Governor, Sirkka Ausiku.
Community members showed up for the outreach programme, where their concerns regarding documentation were taken care of.
The Deputy Minister of Home Affairs, Immigration, Safety and Security, Daniel Kashikola, talks about the state of stateless or undocumented persons in Kavango West.
"According to the Inter-Censal and Demographic Survey of 2016, 32% of the residents of Kavango West do not have birth certificates; 55% of children below the age of five years are not registered and never issued with birth certificates; and 38% of people above 16 years of age do not have Identity documents."
Runguro Katoima gave birth to a baby that is about to turn three years old in Tsumeb.
She tried to register the child in Kavango West but says she was not able to until the outreach programme came to Bravo.
"When I came to Kavango West to register my child for a birth certificate, they told me that they would not register my child unless I went back to Tsumeb, where the child was born. I then asked them, when and where will I get transport money to go register my child?"
There is a perception that stateless or unregistered parents avoid registering their children, fearing that approaching certain offices might get them in trouble with the law.
"We don't arrest people who come for birth registration, ID applications, or passport applications. We encourage them—outreaches or any office—to come to register. It's disturbing to hear that there are people who are afraid of being arrested", says the Director of National Civil Registration, Collens Muleke.