The Department of National Registration (DNR) has hailed successful efforts to enhance its national identity card renewal efforts during the past year.
In its new year message, DNR had shared details of some of its successful initiatives in 2024.
One of these initiatives is to open three branches in the capital Male’ regions to provide ID card printing services, two of which are in the first and second phase of the reclaimed suburb Hulhumale’ These branches were set set up by the DNR to bring ID card printing services closer to the people.
In addition to the capital, DNR has also established three branches in Gaafu Alifu, Dhaalu and Haa Dhaalu Atolls, all providing ID card printing services.
DNR had also provided 10 fingerprint devices to all inhabited islands in 2024, to compliment the “Naares” online portal launched in July to issue identity (ID) cards through local councils.
The first online portal to apply and issue ID cards was inaugurated in the Maldives in 2021. On March 2023, the then administration replaced the portal with an official online portal of the DNR, allowing citizens to apply for the card directly from their location. It brought a halt to the services provided by the local councils in issuing the ID cards.
Even though the DNR portal made it easier to apply for ID cards, from anywhere in the world, making the service online created challenges for the elderly. To provide convenient services to the elderly, the administration started work to further strengthen the existing relationship with the councils. As part of these efforts, the administration launched the Naares portal.
The newly launched portal is designed to streamline the processing and issuance of national identification cards. It enables individuals to monitor the status of their ID card applications and empowers island councils with the capability to issue ID cards, mirroring the process currently in place in Malé City.