Kayapa, Nueva Vizcaya – The Philippine Statistics Authority Provincial Statistical Office (PSA PSO) in Nueva Vizcaya continues to reinforce its commitment to enhancing civil registration services through active collaboration with Municipal Civil Registrars (MCRs).

On 11 July 2025, PSA Nueva Vizcaya convened a coordination meeting with the MCRs of Nueva Vizcaya in the Municipal Hall of Kayapa. The session served as a platform for sharing critical updates and fostering dialogue on the implementation of key civil registration initiatives.

As the provincial arm of the Philippine Statistics Authority, PSA PSO plays a vital role in delivering the agency’s programs at the local level. Among its core services is Civil Registration Services (CRS), which is implemented in close coordination with Local Civil Registry Offices (LCROs) throughout the province. 

The objectives include the following:

1. To provide updates on the implementation of the Automated Processing of Civil Registry Documents (APCAS) and its operational implications for Municipal Civil Registrars;

2. To discuss the current status and rollout plans of the electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics System (eCRVS) at the municipal level;

3. To address issues, concerns, and best practices related to civil registration services in the province;

4. To strengthen coordination and collaboration between the PSA Provincial Statistical Office and Municipal Civil Registrars in support of efficient and accurate civil registration services; and

5. To align local operations with regional and national goals on digital transformation and data quality improvement in civil registration.

The president of MCRs, Engr. Marino C. Manzano, introduced the Municipal Civil Registrars to acknowledge their presence during the meeting.

OIC-Regional Director Girme M. Bayucan officially introduced the new Officer-in-Charge of PSO Nueva Vizcaya, Engr. Joel P. Basco and provided updates on the developments in the Automated Processing of Civil Registry Documents known as Administrative Petition for Correction Automated System (APCAS), the electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics System (eCRVS), updates on Birth Registration Assistance Program (BRAP) and capability trainings of LCRs.

RD Bayucan highlighted the objective automate the end-to-end processing of a petition, from initial LCR encoding to RA decision and final annotation and its rationale to address several challenges on inconsistencies in documentation and workflows across local civil registry offices (LCROs). The automation tries to prevent the existing challenges on inconsistencies and workflows across LCRs and the limited traceability and monitoring of petition status. Thus, the APCAS was developed as a digital solution. Six (6) municipalities were decided to be the first pilot of APCAS from September to December 2025. First LCR will be Kasibu, followed by Quezon, Ambaguio, Solano, Villaverde and Bambang.

For the onboarding and training for Field Office Personnel and LCRs, PSO to determine the Registration Officer and ISA to attend on August 2025 for 2 days. Region 1 will be one of those who will join Batch 1.

Schedule of Roll-out will be:

•     Rollout 1 – 82 LCROs 1 – 15 September 2025

•     Rollout 2 – 82 LCROs 1- 15 October 2025

•     Rollout 3 – 82 LCROs 16 – 30 October 2025

•     Rollout 4 – 82 LCROs 1 – 15 November 2025

•     Rollout 5 – 82 LCROs 16 – 30 November 2025

•     Rollout 6 – 82 LCROs 1 – 15 December 2025

Meanwhile for e-CRVS, the phase 1 implementation which include development of manual of instructions and training manual on the birth and death registration modules of the e-CRVS System will be on July to December 2025 for 86 LCROs, 2 hospitals per site and 1 barangay per site. Phase 2 will be the enhancement and integration of birth and death registration modules with other systems, such as, National ID System and CRS-ITP2 which will roll-out on January to December 2026. Phase 3 for the development and integration of marriage module including monitoring and evaluation the entire eCRVS system on January 2027 to December 2028. LCR of Bayombong will be the first pilot for eCRVS partnered with Regional II Trauma Medical Center (R2TMC).

As to the updates on Birth Registration Assistance Project (BRAP), in Region 2, a total of 84.4% were issued with Omnibus Certification out of the Verified Records, a total of 7,441 issued from Nueva Vizcaya. Nueva Vizcaya registered 50.73% out of the total Omnibus Certification issued from 10,942 total registrations. 

The cumulative number of registered records with Security Paper (SecPa) of the Region 2 is 7,370 which is 71.26% issuance out of the total registered. On the status of notarized MOA from 2024-2025, a total of 8 municipalities have their MOA, while others are for renewal.

As to the trainings for personnel, CRVS 101 and 102 training for LCRs and staff will be held from August to December 2025 for 30 MCRs, 1 batch per month at PSA Headquarters. 

CRVS 101 differs with CRVS 102 on basic concepts, definitions, and procedures on civil registration, Laws related to civil registration, Updates on CRG Issuances (Memorandum Circulars, IRR), Court Decrees, Legal Instruments and Supplemental Reports RA 9048 and RA 10172 Processing of Petitions (c/o Legal Service) Vital Statistics Data Appreciation.

MCRs also discussed operational concerns, shared best practices, and emphasized the continuing role of MCRs in ensuring the accuracy, efficiency, and completeness of civil registration data. The activity reflects PSA’s strong commitment to aligning local civil registration operations with national digital transformation goals and fostering a culture of continuous service improvement.

TECHNICAL NOTES:

•    Administrative Petition for Correction Automated System (APCAS) – a system that aims to streamline and digitalize the process of administrative petitions for the correction of clerical errors and change of first name.

•    Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics System (eCRVS) is a digitalized version of the traditional Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) system, which records vital events like births, deaths, marriages, and divorces.

•    Birth Registration Assistance Program (BRAP) - a Philippine government initiative aimed at increasing birth registration, particularly among marginalized communities. It helps individuals, especially those in remote areas and indigenous populations

•    Security Paper (SECPA) refers to the paper used by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) for printing official documents like birth certificates, marriage certificates, and death certificates.

•    Republic Act (RA 9048) - an act authorizing the City/Municipal Civil Registrar (C/MCR) or the Consul General to correct clerical or typographical errors in civil registry documents without the need for a court order.

•    Republic Act 10172 (RA 10172) is a Philippine law that allows the C/MCR or the Consul General to correct clerical or typographical errors in the day and month of the date of birth, or the sex of a person in the civil register, without the need for a judicial order.

SGD

ENGR. JOEL P. BASCO

(Supervising Statistical Specialist)

Officer-in-Charge