VIOLET MENGO
Lusaka
April 23,2016
COLLINS Simuka is from Southern Province. About three years ago, he hoped to have his group of farmers registered in Lusaka but could not manage. This was due to congestion at the registration centre. The process was also extremely slow.
Fortunately, his second attempt was successful as he managed to register his group and obtain the certificate of registration the same day.
“I arrived yesterday around 17:00 hours when the Department of Registrar of Societies offices were closing, so I was advised to come the following day,” Mr Simuka said.
The following day Mr Simuka was given the certificate of registration; there were no queues as was the case three years ago.
“It looks like the system they have now is a lot better, I am happy. I advise my friends looking forward to register [their organisations] not to worry anymore because the system here is great,” Mr Simuka said.
And Pastor Cephas Simuyemba from Apostolic Faith and Acts Church in Zambia is another client who has seen the improvement in service delivery at the Registrar of Societies.
“I submitted forms for two of our branches in Mumbwa and I have seen that the system is good. Last week I received one certificate, and today, I have collected another one,” Pastor Simuyemba said.
He commended the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Registrar of Societies for the efficiency in service delivery.
The improvements in service delivery at the department of the Registrar of Societies are due to the recently launched computerised system.
The Societies Registration (SRS) is an automated system introduced by the department in 2015 and launched last month, aimed at enhancing efficiency and effectiveness in the registration and regulation of societies in Zambia.
The system provides a number of applications which include registration of societies, a branch of a registered society; registration of exemption of a society and search on register/file of registered society by using the computer.
Computers have improved the way businesses operate in respective industries.
Technology has advanced so much that those who are not using computers in their business are at a major disadvantage against their competitors.
And the Ministry of Home Affairs, in its quest to be competitive in the sector, launched the ‘computerisation of system project’.
Minister of Home Affairs Davies Mwila, who launched the project in Lusaka, said computerisation of operations of the Registrar of Societies will help speed up business operations.
Mr Mwila said the operation shift from manual to computerised system will enhance collection of revenue and improve accountability.
He said the computerisation of the department would help reduce on logistical challenges faced by societies throughout the country.
“We live in a world where we cannot talk about development without accepting the use of information and communication technologies. Everywhere around the world, computer systems have been used for institutions to keep both their clients and staff records manage their finances and provide online application,” Mr Mwila said.
He said the computerisation process at the Registrar of Societies was in line with Government objectives, through its e-Government initiative, of creating efficiency and reducing costs of doing business, thereby improving service delivery.
E-Government describes the use of technologies to facilitate the operation of government and the dispersement of government information and services.
It deals heavily with internet and non-internet applications to aid government operations.
Mr Mwila said with the computerisation of the system, collecting of consumer feedback, ordering of raw materials, and inspection of products will be made quicker and companies will operate much faster and produce better and quality results.
He said government is determined to embrace and promote the use of such applications and other information communication technology to provide better public service as the nation moves towards achieving and implementing the Vision 2030.
The minister urged the department to strive and work towards rolling out the system to the other provinces in the near future.
Mr Mwila said the computerisation system project is in line with President Lungu’s call.
Zambia has embraced this trend as part of its strategy is rolling out initiatives that expand the interaction scope and use of e-Government processes.
President Lungu, during the opening of the National Assembly, emphasised the need to be adaptive, innovative and determined to change the way things are done.
The Registrar of Societies has been mandated with the role of registering societies, political parties, associations, clubs and churches to ensure better control and supervision under the Societies Act.
Chief registrar of societies Thandiwe Mhende said before computerisation of the system, the society had accumulated 47,000 files.
Ms Mhende said the manual system, coupled with such a high volume of records, brought about a number of challenges for the department which included difficulties in storage space, delays in retrieval of information, inefficiencies in records management and difficulties in ensuring security and confidentiality of stored documents.
Since 1958, the Office of the Registrar of Societies has been using the manual system and this contributed to delays in registration processes and issuance of certificates.
This also led to loss or misplacement of documents submitted by clients and the challenge of inadequate space for storage of huge volumes of files.
She said the introduction of the computerisation system provides the department an opportunity to address the highlighted challenges.
Ms Mhende further said the new system will help them serve clients better as it would result in enhanced revenue collection, improved records management, enhanced processing speed for registration and retrieval of information.
And Home Affairs head of public relations Moses Suwali said plans are under-way to decentralise the operations of the Department of the Registrar of Societies in all provinces.
Mr Suwali said that this will help ease the issuance of certificates in provinces without subjecting people to travelling to Lusaka just to obtain certificates.
He also said the computerisation programme is on-going in other departments under the Ministry of Home Affairs and the project is expected to enhance efficiency and effectiveness.
“The Zambia Police Service and the Zambia Correctional Service are some of the departments in the ministry where the computerisation programme is critical for it will enhance security,” Mr Siwali said.
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