MHSSS $256.4M Beneficiary Registry to digitise over 50 social services, including pensions and public assistance

In a major push toward digital transformation, the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security (MHSSS) officially launched the Beneficiary Registry and Document Management System (BRDMS).
The $256.4 million state-of-the-art platform is designed to overhaul the delivery of more than 50 critical social services, including senior citizens’ pensions, public assistance, and disability support.
Funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and developed by Synergy International Systems Incorporated, the BRDMS aims to streamline service access, eliminate inefficiencies, and centralise beneficiary data, making the Ministry’s work faster, more accountable, and more accessible.
In this regard, the system will play a pivotal role in applications being processed simultaneously on the platform.
Speaking at the launch, MHSSS Minister Dr Vindhya Persaud called the initiative a “landmark leap” for Guyana’s social sector, noting that the system will replace outdated paper-based methods, incorporate change management training, and build public awareness to ensure full adoption across all stakeholder groups.
“It would also develop the platforms where that information would be in the hands of everyone in our entire system who needs it to make it work. And so, it started with looking at the regional system and making sure that persons in the region were equipped with the kind of equipment. So, we were able to deploy over 300 computers and more than 50 printers, and this is across the region, because that’s where it starts.”
“And we’re working on the offline application because we’re looking at the terrain of Guyana to make sure that wherever someone is, their information could be transmitted… What that does is literally move our process from taking weeks to months to minutes.” Minister Persaud said.
With Guyana now leading the region in digitised social service delivery, Minister Persaud explained that the platform not only enhances internal efficiency but also positions the country as a model for tech-driven governance in the Caribbean and Latin America.
“We had a system that did not capture the data that we wanted to have, the kind of reporting we wanted. We had a system that was not integrated. We had a system that, as you said, did not speak to each other, which is where we want to go in our governments and what our president has said in terms of having integrated ICT platforms where it’s not only going to be within a ministry but among agencies. We have taken that step.”
“What we have also been able to do is to set up the kind of system that will track applications so people will not fall through the cracks. It’s not only speed. It’s tracking. It’s accountability,” the minister explained.
The initiative began in 2020 as a strong partnership with the IDB, aimed at supporting vulnerable people during the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the ministry, the partnership with both IDB and Synergy was a global, round-the-clock effort that involved studying other systems to build a stronger one.