Testing to begin on ID register
(CNS): Following the recent Cabinet approval of the partial commencement of the Identification Register Law, which was passed at the end of last year, work has started on the creation and testing of the register ahead of the live application process. The start of the legislation also paves the way for the creation of the ID registrar’s office as the government begins the controversial rollout of the official ID project. The approval of the bill enables regulations to be drafted for both the ID register law and the partner legislation, the National Identification Card Bill, 2022. These should be finalised later this year.
Tamara Ebanks, acting chief officer in the investment ministry, explained in a press release the rationale behind the project, which is no longer going to be mandatory.
“The Cayman Islands ID card will enable our residents to identify themselves online and in person and enable government entities to re-imagine how they can serve our people,” she said. “It will enhance existing services and enable people to avail of myriad new digital services. We look forward to collaborating with our colleagues in the public and private sectors to leverage this new technology for the benefit of our people, community and government.”
The Cayman Islands eGovernment Unit has been working with the e-Governance Academy in Estonia, which is a world leader in e-governance. That country has used digital technology as a tool to empower its people, achieving this largely by providing efficiencies with transparency that has freed up time and made life easier for its citizens. Ministry officials noted that Estonia has been assisting countries around the world with implementing e-governance ecosystems.
A local technical delegation from three Cayman Islands ministries recently visited Estonia for four days to a conference at the academy. The delegation included staff from the border control, financial services and investment ministries, as those portfolios will be pivotal in ensuring the seamless and efficient operation of the system once it is up and running.
Acting Deputy Chief Officer Charles Brown said the conference provided an opportunity to learn from Estonia’s leaders as well as others who are adopting its e-governance systems.
“Every person representing the Cayman Islands Government benefitted from this information sharing at a high level and gained inspiration for the digital transformation of the Cayman Islands,” he said. “We look forward to re-imagining delivery of government services in line with these insights and the core principles of efficiency, security and integrity.”
eGovernment Director Ian Tibbetts said it was “an extremely productive trip” where the team gained valuable insights from other countries’ innovations and experiences.
“Most importantly, the opportunity for the CIG delegation to collectively spend a significant amount of time focused on action planning, how we can deliver greater benefits to the Cayman public and private sectors,” he added.
With a lot of work still to do, the delegation will be using what they learned during the visit to the Baltic state to reinforce the local eGovernment Unit’s strategy for secure digital interoperability, emphasising privacy and efficient digital services. While drawing inspiration from Estonia’s achievements, the CIG acknowledges the need for local adaptation and tailoring solutions to meet the distinctive needs of this community.
In the face of the continued controversy and suspicion of the system, officials said that transparency, public engagement and data security are paramount in the government’s approach. Committed to open dialogue, the ministry is actively seeking feedback and hosting public consultations to address concerns related to data security, privacy and collaboration with the public.
Ensuring the well-being of residents and the protection of their interests remains central to the digital transformation journey and creating a robust and inclusive digital ecosystem that benefits all residents, the ministry stated.
Deputy Governor Franz Manderson has committed his support to the national ID card process. When he spoke on the bill when it came to parliament, he said the government should enable its citizens to prove their identity because individual identity is an essential attribute of participating in society, the workforce and our community.
“This is the vision we are pursuing with these two bills, which will help immensely in our ambition to deliver world class service to our customers, the residents of the Cayman Islands,” he said.
The approval of the bill also enables regulations to be drafted for both the Identification Register Bill, 2022 and the National Identification Card Bill, 2022, and these should be finalised later this year.
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So we are turning into Honduras?
Obviously this is only for the benefit of law abiding people. Non law abiding persons will not do this and will complain (as usual) about it as it will be harder for them to identify as what they are not. We get it. Don’t want to do it then please don’t get one. Your choice. For everyone else if it will make your life easier then get one. Your choice.
Ya can’t fix stupid!!
Where do I sign up? Really I would like to be an early adopter so I can use it for car relicensing in a few months.
Zzz, sign in a guest on the DVDL website and renew your car license today instead.
You nah gona ghet me boy.
Nah devil for meh.
Good. Then the system will work. As with most Draconian systems, after the law-abiding have complied, then payment of services will require the holy identification. That way, the only people left will be …………… you and others like you.
Kids are shooting each other and people can’t afford their weekly bills….but THIS is what the government “for the people” are working on?
Totally ridiculous.
Must. Look. Busy.
Must. Slap. Backs.
Must. Spend. Money.
#world class
6.29 One track mind some? You see what you want to see.
World Class circus
No thanks!
With all that’s happening in the local economy right now. Is this really necessary??
Yes. Definitely. Particularly because of what is happening in local economy and the hundreds of non Caymanians leeching off our limited resources.
What would be an example or two of this “leeching” you refer to?
You could kick every non Caymanian off the Island right now and it would so nothing to bring down the cost of living. Remember during the pandemic lockdown? the population dropped by half and nothing got cheaper. Stop looking for enemies in the working class, the ones making your life harder and more expensive are the ones who are not affected by it.
Let’s see if take as long to roll out as RFID licence plates. And what’s the point if it’s voluntary. I don’t this the public has absolute trust in CIG so I doubt this will be utilised by a majority of the populace.
Its either naivety or foolishness, but the welcoming of these ID Cards is the start of a rapid all out attack on your personal freedoms. Those in power forcing it through are either corrupt or oblivious. These cards will lead to central digital banking and all your access to anything. This is going to happen inside 6 years. Doesnt seem like a problem does it?
Just wait until you went to Blackbeards twice in a week, or failed to go to the gym, or put too much gas in your car this month…the card will automatically stop working.
Save this post and at least know that you were warned.
All members behind the push for these cards should be vetted for ties to the WEF. and then voted out.
You people are so stupid its not even funny
Its just sad
it must be great always being right
You have issues. Hope you feel better about life soon.
You probably need to get your fifth booster for the cold ‘pandemic”
You are right, the world is ending, the lizard people are taking over with the help of the illuminati, Beelzebub has risen and all is lost. Board up your windows, lock your doors, cut up your cards and smash your phone. Maybe build a bunker to wait this all out in. Make sure you don’t come out until it is safe.
At least you will still have your Conch shell to crawl under when the going gets rough.
Agree. People who have not seen it happen in europe are clueless as to the extent to which this can take over your life and freedoms. Just wait until society here goes cashless and you are at the mercy of the banks who will jack up fees and demand documentation eveyr 6 months and block transactions at will .. among many other things.
Will having this ID card mean that I do not have to wait months on end for the civil service to process simple applications and tasks? Will this mean that I will actually receive responses to my queries?
If not, then this money would be better served improving standards of customer service and turnaround times.
It will probably make it worse for a lot of people as the CIG workers will be able to see what type of Caymanian (or not) you are in advance and tailor their service that way.
Waste of Money
Hard nope from me
Estonia, lol.
More new civil servants and someone will be cashing in making these cards and administrating the system.
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
CarePay 2.0 is another $10,000,000 solution to a problem that doesn’t exist.
Does anyone need CIG back office department staff to review their immigration records, health reports, land register and DVDL holdings before deciding how they want to reimagine their customer service level?
There seems to be quite a lot of reimagining of service levels as it is without digitising the discrimination level. Still can’t get audit-ready reporting.
usual cig and civil service slow boat to nowhere…..
ever wonder why national symbol is a turtle????
6.29 One track mind some? You see what you want to see.
W.E.F
You hit the nail on the head! I want nothing to do with Klaus Schwab’s vision of the world. Keep it out of Cayman!