The records form a basic, continuous source of information about the population, providing a record of vital events relating to people and satisfying the needs for evidence which has bearing on rights, entitlements, liabilities, status and nationality. There has been little change to the basic registration procedures since 1864 while there have been many changes in our society, major developments in technology and increased expectations by citizens in how public services should be delivered. We fully accept that there are shortcomings in the administration of the Civil Registration Service which need to be addressed. Hence the modernisation programme. The modernisation programme is primarily a customer service initiative.
Modern society demands choice in accessing and availing of public services.
Customers have rising expectations - they want quality services supplied at a place and time of their choosing. Central to the implementation of a modern civil registration service will be the development of a comprehensive customer action plan based on the principles of quality customer service. The emphasis in the next phase will be on the development of external access and services via the Internet. The modernisation of the Civil Registration Service will include the design and development of new processes and procedures, the introduction of modern technology and reform of the legislation governing civil registration Historical Data Project. The electronic capture of historical data is of fundamental importance to the success of the modernisation programme.