Health
By Victor Adeoti,
OVER the years, birth registrations in Nigeria have been paper-based, with the attendant consequences of low and inefficient documentation of births.
Population experts say that many birth registrations cannot be accounted for due to the lack of proper record-keeping by the concerned authorities.
According to UNICEF, society first acknowledges a child’s existence and identity through birth registration.
The UN agency said that a birth certificate is proof of legal identity, and is the basis upon which children can establish a nationality, avoid the risk of statelessness and seek protection from violence and exploitation.
It also said that a birth certificate, which is proof of age, is needed to help prevent child labour, child marriage and underage recruitment into the armed forces.
It may also be required for access to social service systems, including health, education, and justice.
The adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by the United Nations General Assembly in September 2015 therefore places birth registration firmly on the international development agenda.
It included a dedicated target (16.9) under Goal 16: “Provide legal identity for all, including birth registration, by 2030.”
Complementing this is target 17.9, which calls for support in building the statistical capacity needed for strong national civil registration systems.
Such systems produce vital statistics, including those on birth registration, which are foundational for achieving sustained human and economic development.
Therefore, the question posed by population experts is Can Nigeria achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal of Universal e-birth registration by 2030?
As a way of meeting the 2030 e-birth registration development agenda, President Bola Tinubu, on Nov. 8, 2023, inaugurated the National Geospatial Data Repository Digital Civil Registration and Vital Statistics System (CRVS).
The CRVS is expected to generate accurate and reliable demographic data in Nigeria.
The president also inaugurated the National Coordination Committee for the CRVS, under the chairmanship of the National Population Commission (NPC) and stakeholders across all Federal Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs).
In his remarks, the president said that the CRVS would help improve service delivery, care and knowledge to Nigerians
He said it also will enable the government to design a well-tailored, effective and efficient policy capable of meeting the needs of the Nigerian people.
“It is my honour to be here to launch a digital Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics System (e-CRVS), a National Geospatial, Data Respiratory and the inauguration of the CRVS National Coordination Committee approved.
“This launch marks another great step in our efforts to generate accurate and reliable demographic data in Nigeria.
“The CRVS system is the basic building block of an identity ecosystem.
“It will help to improve service delivery, care and knowledge to Nigerians and shall ultimately become a vital source of identity data across federal agencies such as NIMS-C, NIS, road safety, police, EFCC and other security outfits,”, the president said.
Also, UNICEF says it will continue to advocate for e-birth registration in Nigeria.
Celine Lafoucriere, Chief of UNICEF Field Office for South-West, Nigeria said that e-birth registration provides children in Nigeria the right for a legal identity.
Lafoucriere said this at a two-day dialogue workshop entitled “A media dialogue to drive E-birth registration in South-West Nigeria”, recently held in Lagos.
She said that without a birth certificate, the child remains invisible.
According to the UNICEF boss, a registered child has an acknowledged right to quality protection, health, education and other crucial services.
“It is part of our mission that every child in Nigeria is given the right to a legal identity.
“Birth registration is very key. It is not just a simple procedural formality but a fundamental human right and a cornerstone of a child’s legal identity.
“It is important because without it, those children remain invisible,” she said.
Lafoucriere also said that birth registration will assist government for adequate planning for children’s right and to generate valid statistics for planning.
She said that e-birth registration provided the parents the opportunity to register their children as soon as they are born.
“E-birth registration is an innovative approach. It stands truly as a game changer for a country like Nigeria with huge distance challenges.
“Besides the birth registration, it also present a huge support to create a very robust and reliable civil registration system.
“That only not record births, but also to generate vital statistics that are necessary for effective planning and implementation of policies that is very crucial for planning.
“If the government do not know how much to budget for, it cannot do it efficiently.
“Accurate and timely data from birth registration will also allow to monitor the progress we are collectively making the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG), ranging from eliminating poverty, and hunger, and promoting quality education and reducing inequality,” she said.
Lafoucriere, however, urged the media to assist in raising awareness in educating Nigerians on the importance of birth registration.
“As a member of the media, your role is crucial and cannot be overstated.
“Your platforms are crucial for raising awareness with us for educating the public and holding stakeholders accountable in taking care of those children, making sure they have a legal identity and the basic services.
“Let’s leverage our collective power to make a lasting impact in the lives of millions of Nigerian children,” she said.
In his presentation, Mr Bamidele Sadiku, NPC Lagos Office Director, said that a well-developed and functioning civil registration system entails the registration of all vital events including births and deaths
Sadiku said that e-birth registration, when launched, will provide an identity that usually enables access to a wide variety of basic rights and services as bona fide citizens.
He said, having the e-birth registration platform will lead to better lives for Nigerians.
Sadiku also said that the commission was planning to link birth registration with the National Identification Number (NIN) to curb double registration.
He said that since NIN is unique to every individual, it will help the commission to erase double birth registration.
“By linking NIN with a birth certificate, people will not have the courage to double registration.
“This will also provide us with an adequate record which will become authentic and provide for adequate planning,” he said.
Also, Denis Onoise, UNICEF Child Protection Specialist, said the e-birth registration was conceptualised about two years ago, with the plan to ensure every child in Nigeria has a legal identity.
Onoise explained that the right of every child to birth registration is enshrined in various international instruments.
They include the UN CRC (articles 7 & 8) & the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (article 6) and the Nigeria Child Rights Act (2003) (Article 5(2)).
Quoting the latest National Population Commission (NPC), data, Onoise said the estimated population of Nigeria is 216,783,381; children under five are 16,705,671 and children under one are 3,554.005.
He said there are 164 million unregistered children worldwide, with more than half (around 91 million, representing 56 per cent) living in Africa.
He explained that the e-birth registration was designed to close the gaps as well as ensure that every child counts.
Population experts, however, say that with the inauguration of e-birth registration by the NPC in the country, with serious political will, Nigeria may achieve universal e-birth registration by 2030. (NANFeatures
2nd September, 2024.
C.E.
Tags: e-birth
