Over 60,000 Afghans have so far been registered since the registration process started on October 15 last. The federal government had launched the registration in collaboration with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The process would be completed by the end of this year.
Since the Eidul Fitr break, the pace of the registration of Afghans in Pakistan has doubled. More than 45,000 Afghans were registered in the first two weeks of the largest-ever registration by government.
This exercise is aimed to provide those registered with a proof of registration card that is valid for three years and recognises the bearer as an Afghan citizen living temporarily in Pakistan.
The registration is a follow-up of a Pakistan government census of Afghans conducted last year (February/March 2005) that counted just over three million Afghans living in Pakistan. More than 580,000 have returned home with UNHCR assistance since the census, leaving an estimated 2.4 million Afghans still living in Pakistan today.
Nadra has set up 100 registration centres staffed by 2,500 people, while UNHCR and the government's Commissioner for Afghan Refugees (CAR) have deployed 1,000 staff members to support and monitor the exercise.