MANILA – More than 80 million Filipinos already registered to the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys), the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said Tuesday.
The PSA said as of Sept. 1 this year, it has already registered 80.54 million Filipinos, representing about 87.5 percent of the population aged five years and above.
“Within this group, 78.12 million individuals have been issued a unique PhilSys Number (PSN), ensuring their distinct identity through the verification of their demographic and biometric information,” it said in a statement.
“The issuance of PhilID and ePhilID is meticulously managed by the PSA, with a rigorous Quality Assurance process and stringent protocols in place. This ensures that every card accurately reflects an individual’s valid demographic and biometric data, further enhancing the system’s integrity,” the PSA added.
To date, the Philippine Postal Corporation (PHLPost) already delivered 38.51 million Philippine IDs while the PSA has already issued 40.61 million electronic PhilIDs (ePhilIDs.)
In a separate statement on Tuesday, the PSA also encouraged Filipinos to use their PhilIDs and ePhilIDs for financial transactions.
“As more registered persons receive their PhilID and ePhilID, we encourage them to use it in their transactions with financial institutions to gain access to financial services and products that can open opportunities for them,” PSA Undersecretary and National Statistician Dennis Mapa said.
The PSA said the PhilSys’ colocation efforts with the Land Bank of the Philippines (Landbank) was cited by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) as a contributor to the 170 percent annual increase in the number of basic deposit accounts (BDAs) to 21.9 million in the first quarter of 2023.
During the same period last year, BDAs numbered to around 8.1 million, central bank data show.
The strategy contributed to the opening of 7.5 million additional BDAs in the fourth quarter of 2022, the PSA added. (PNA)