Human rights groups have urged the government to facilitate access to national identity cards to communities throughout the country so that they won’t jeopardize the youth in the upcoming general elections.
This was said by Vostile Creative Trust director, Malvern Daka during a symposium organised by ZimRights in Gweru over the weekend.
Daka added that there was need for young people to access national identity cards so that they are able to register to vote.
“There is need for community awareness by all stakeholders to ensure that people have access to national documents. There is also need for the Registrar-General’s office to decentralise their offices to ensure that people in remote areas also access identity cards.
“First time voters, especially those born around 2000 need to exercise their right to take part in electoral processes,” he said.
Daka called for realignment of the country’s laws to ensure that people that were born in Zimbabwe by foreign parents labelled “aliens”can also enjoy the right to vote.
“There are still a lot of barriers in accessing IDs such as centralisation of offices, language barriers, and lack of technological advancements, thereby limiting access to documentation,” he said.
The country is set to hold general elections in 2023.
