The Health and Population Department, Government of Punjab, has signed a historic memorandum of understanding to ensure timely and accurate reporting and registration of births and deaths at government health facilities across Punjab.
This tripartite agreement was signed between the Health and Population Department, the Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Department, the Local Government and Community Development Department, and the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA). The objective of the agreement is to digitally integrate government health facilities with each other.
The signing ceremony was held at Committee Room One of the Health and Population Department on Birdwood Road, Lahore. Senior government officials attended the event, which was organized by the National Health Support Program Punjab.
The memorandum of understanding was signed by Director General NADRA Punjab Mrs Fiza Shahid, Director General Local Government and Community Development Department Ahmed Kamal Mann, Additional Secretary Technical of the Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Department Dr Hafiz Muhammad Waseem, and Special Secretary Operations of the Health and Population Department Aun Abbas Bukhari. In addition, Additional Secretary Administration of the Health and Population Department Muhammad Ashraf, Deputy Secretary of the Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Department Muhammad Usman Fazal, Director Operations of the Local Government Department Dr Farooq Ahmed Khara, and Director Operations of NADRA Yasar Saeed also signed the agreement.
Provincial Minister for Health and Population Khawaja Imran Nazir attended the ceremony as chief guest, while Secretary Health and Population Nadia Saqib and Parliamentary Secretary Health and Population Asma Naz Abbasi were also present.
In her welcome remarks, Secretary Health and Population Nadia Saqib said that the initiative aims to integrate NADRA’s digital birth and death notification system with civil registration and vital statistics dashboards and link it with local government institutions.
She said that electronic medical records have been connected with NADRA’s system through a secure data sharing mechanism, enabling immediate access to accurate and timely information. She added that authentic and timely data is crucial for evidence based policymaking and targeted interventions in underdeveloped districts.
Provincial Minister for Health and Population Khawaja Imran Nazir appreciated the collective efforts of all partner departments and paid tribute to the leadership of the Health and Population Department, especially Additional Secretary Administration and Project Director National Health Support Program Muhammad Ashraf and his team.
He said that under this agreement, timely, accurate, and real time registration of births and deaths at government health facilities will be possible, which will further improve health planning, governance, and the delivery of public services.
The provincial minister further said that this initiative will help achieve the set targets under the World Bank supported National Health Support Program, which aims to strengthen health information systems, enhance interdepartmental coordination, and ensure effective use of digital systems, particularly in underserved areas.
This memorandum of understanding also reinforces Pakistan’s commitment to achieving universal health coverage and the global sustainable development goals by promoting complete, timely, and accurate registration of births and deaths. Senior representatives of all partner departments reaffirmed their commitment to close coordination during the pilot phase and the subsequent province wide rollout of the system.
Earlier, Deputy Director Health Information Service Delivery Unit Khalid Sharif briefed participants in detail on real time data collection mechanisms and the process of information sharing with NADRA. He said that electronic medical records are being entered at government health facilities in Punjab on a 24 hour basis.
NADRA Assistant Director Rizwan Ali briefed the participants on the process of data receipt, verification, and subsequent sharing of information with the local government department.
