Minister of Home Affairs, Stephen Kampyongo will in October 2019 take up the new Chairmanship of the African Ministers responsible for civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS).
Zambia will take over from Mauritania at the 5th Conference of African Ministers responsible for CRVS that will be held in Zambia from 14th-18th October 2019.
Mr. Kampyongo who will take up the role will hold the position for a period of two years.
Meanwhile, Mr. Kampyongo commended Zambia’s ambassador and Permanent Representative to the African Union, His Excellency Emmanuel Mwamba for signing the host agreement for the Conference on behalf of Zambia.
Mr. Mwamba signed the Agreement on behalf of Foreign Affairs Minister, Hon. Joseph Malanji and Zambia on Monday, to host the Fifth International Conference of African Ministers responsible for Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS).
The Conference themed ‘’Innovation Civil Registration and Vital Statistics System: Foundation for Legal Identity Management’, will take place from 14th to 18th October, 2019 in Lusaka, Zambia.
During the signing ceremony, Mr. Mwamba noted that the management of civil registration is an important pre-requisite to achieving the free movements of goods and people in Africa.
He added that Zambia is privileged to host such an international conference and was committed to ensuring that the meeting is a success.
He said it would be difficult to achieve the goals set out in the African Union Agenda 2063 and the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA) without countries having people with legal identity, proper and adequate statistics on trade and economics.
And African Union Commissioner for Economic Affairs His Excellency, Victor Harrison said no country can develop without adequate and correct statistical information.
He stated that the forthcoming hosting of the conference by Zambia was testimony of the importance that the African continental body attached importance to capturing correct data as a tool for national development.
The Conference is being organised by the African Union Commission in collaboration with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, the African Development Bank and the Government of the Republic of Zambia.
Civil registration is the act of recording and documenting of vital events in a person’s life (including birth, marriage, divorce, adoption, and death and cause of death) and is a fundamental function of national governments
This was in a statement issued on 18 September, 2019, by Mrs. Inutu Mwanza, First Secreatry-Press to Zambia, Addis Ababa, Ethopia.