PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan (PIA) -- Over 13,000 Palaweños have no birth records and are yet to be registered by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) in Palawan, the nation’s civil registrar-general said.

It is part of the 20,818 individuals identified by PSA as among those who remain unregistered in the city of Puerto Princesa and the province of Palawan as per the 2020 Census of Population and Housing. PSA has already registered 7,244 locals through late registration and issued security papers, for which fees have been waived.

“Dito sa Palawan and Puerto Princesa, meron tayong na-identify na 20, 818 na wala pang birth registration. Identified na ‘yan sila. Pwedeng may mga wala pa diyan--pero ito ‘yong mga  nagsabing wala talaga silang birth registration. Ito ‘yong pina-process namin,

[In Palawan and Puerto Princesa, we have identified 20, 818 with no birth registrations. They are already identified. It is possible that there are others who have not yet been included-- but these are the individuals who have said that they do not have birth registration. These are the numbers we are processing],” Usec. Claire Dennis Mapa said.

Despite ongoing mobile registration of PSA in partnership with local civil registrars and chief executives, the distance of island barangays in Palawan remains a challenge to visit households.

The number of unregistered individuals usually consists of members of indigenous peoples, vulnerable groups, and members of poor households. Mapa underscored the vital role of birth certificates in various transactions, such as in school, employment, and travel.

One of Mapa’s objectives in his visit to Palawan is to also discuss ways with local civil registrars to accelerate the registration of the over 13,000 unregistered locals.

Palawan’s 13,000 unregistered individuals are part of the country’s 1.2 million target. The census revealed that there are 3.7 million Filipinos who have no birth certificates. In partnership with local civil registrars, PSA’s birth registration assistance program tracked the location of 1.2 million unregistered Filipinos in the Philippines.

As of now, there are already 120,000 Filipinos registered, and the rest are being processed, Mapa said.

“I am very happy na the local chief executives are very supportive of the program. Naka-waive na ‘yong fees, talagang tulong para maipasok sila sa system at mabigyan sila ng birth certificate. On the part of PSA, ang commitment namin ay ina-accelerate namin ang pasok (sa system),

[I am very happy that the local chief executives are very supportive of the program. The fees are waived; it is really to help them be included in the system and have a birth certificate. On the part of PSA, our commitment is to accelerate their inclusion (in the system)],” he said. (RG/PIA Mimaropa - Palawan)