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To mark the day of the African Child, the United Nations
Children’s Fund (UNICEF) called on countries to register
all infants at birth in order to ensure their right to a
legal identity. Africa has the highest proportion of
unregistered children in the world, effectively
marginalizing millions of children from the moment they
are born, UNICEF stated. UNICEF estimates that 50
million births worldwide were not officially recorded in
2000, amounting to about 40% of the total number of
births. The proportion rises to 70% in Africa's poorest
countries, according to the organisation's data. It
emphasised that birth registration "plays a fundamental
role in acquiring some rights" including access to
health care, immunisation, schooling and subsequently
voting rights and jobs.
UNICEF says most babies in Mozambique are denied their
"membership card" to society, because they are not
registered at birth. Speaking at the launch of a
registration drive, UNICEF's Maputo
representative, said that birth registration was a
fundamental right all children were entitled to because
it was the first legal acknowledgement of their
existence. Without it children have no official
identity, recognized name or nationality.
UNICEF’s Executive Director emphasised that
unregistered children lack the most basic protection
against abuse and exploitation making them a more
attractive commodity to child traffickers, illegal
adoption rings and others who seek to take advantage of
their lack of legal status. A birth certificate opens
the door to a whole range of other rights and, "is of
crucial importance for all children, especially for
orphans and other children made vulnerable by HIV/AIDS,
and for street children. We encourage the government of
Mozambique to strengthen the registration system and to
remove all barriers that prevent parents from getting
their child registered," she declared.
According to UNICEF it is difficult to estimate how many
people do not have birth certificates in Mozambique.
From 2000 to 2002 the number of people registered
increased from 145 000 to 244 000 per year. According to
the National Directorate of Registration and Notary,
between 70 and 80% of those were children. However,
around 765 000 babies are born in the country annually.
There are many reasons why parents fail to register
their children. Some live a long distance from the
nearest registry office and some cannot afford the
registration fee. According to Plan International, which
works with children to alleviate poverty, many live in
poor housing conditions and do not have anywhere safe to
keep important documents. Some prefer to delay
registration until they feel confident that all their
children have reached an age when their chances of
surviving to adulthood are good. |
