The month-long celebration of the 34th Civil Registration Month (CRM) kicked off in the provinces of Iloilo and Guimaras in Western Visayas last February 2, 2023.
The events centered around this year’s theme “CRVS: The Future of Seamless Services” which highlights the government’s goal to provide efficient and unified civil registration services across the country by 2024.
The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) spearheaded the CRM opening ceremonies along with local civil registrars.
In Iloilo, around 250 delegates including city/municipal civil registrars (C/MCRs) participated in motorcades from six locations that converged at the Tamasak Arena Gym in Barotac Nuevo.
Association of Civil Registrars of Iloilo (ACRI) Inc., President Atty. Reynold A. Perez welcomed the participants, and emphasized in his message the importance of timely registration of vital events.
PSA RSSO VI OIC Regional Director Nelida C. Amolar delivered a rousing message and “highlighted PSA’s commitment to seamless civil registration and vital statistics services.”
Vice Mayor Hernan G. Biron Jr. of the Municipality of Barotac Nuevo as the guest of honor delivered his message through Atty. Reynold Perez, the Municipal Administrator.
In his speech, he expressed gratitude to PSA for programs that assisted them in making decisions and policies that benefited their municipality. He also thanked the organizers for selecting their municipality as the site of this important occasion.
Meanwhile in Guimaras, the PSA, municipal civil registrars and local government staff also held an information caravan around the province to promote civil registration.
The caravan passed through the towns of Buenavista to San Lorenzo, Sibunag, Nueva Valencia, and ended in Jordan for the opening program.
The presentation of Guimaras’ Vital Events 2022 vs 2023 and the Quiz Bee contest for the Local Civil Registrar (LCR) staff highlighted the event.
Mayor Cresente P. Chaves Jr., of Jordan, graced the opening ceremony and acknowledged the importance of the work of the Civil Registrars and expressed support for the month-long celebration of the 34th CRM in Guimaras.
Guimaras Provincial Statistics Officer Nelida B. Losare affirmed that “the goal of the Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) decade that by 2024 no one should be left behind unregistered will be successfully attained.”
Comparative vital statistics reports for Guimaras showed a general decline in registered vital events in 2023 compared to 2022. Registered vital events in 2023 dropped by -9.89%, wherein births registered dropped by -9.89%, while marriages and deaths decreased by -14.89% and -6.52%, respectively.
The best-performing Local Civil Registry Office (LCROs) and Municipal Civil Registrars (MCRs) were acknowledged and awarded a plaque of award: Nueva Valencia LCRO was awarded the Best LCRO, followed by Jordan LCRO and Buenavista LCRO.
“The LCRO of Sibunag was awarded for their exemplary commitment to timeliness and accuracy in the monthly Decentralized Vital Statistics System (DVSS) reports, while the LCRO of Jordan and Nueva Valencia garnered an award for their 100% coverage on Barangay Civil Registry System (BCRS) implementation and encoding of the survey result,” Losare said.
“LCRO Nueva Valencia was also awarded for registering the highest number of PhilSys Birth Registration Assistance Project (PBRAP) beneficiaries in the Province of Guimaras, while LCRO Buenavista garnered the award for having the most number of activities conducted related to civil Registration.”
Various activities will be held all month long like mobile registration drives, gift-giving events for registrants, mass weddings, quizzes and contests, clean-up drives, and dance performances.
According to the declaration signed in 1991 by the late President Cory Aquino, the CRM is commemorated every February to emphasize the importance of civil registration across the archipelago. Through gatherings like these, it is hoped that more Filipinos will be encouraged to register birth, marriage and death events on time.
