-MPs review disturbing situation as gov’t promises to issue over 500 000 birth certificates to kids in crisis-hit NW, SW and Far North Regions by end of 2021
By Doh Bertrand Nua
The difficulties encountered nationwide in obtaining a birth certificate has gone under scrutiny at the National Assembly. This was during a Special Plenary Sitting which was devoted to the difficulties encountered obtaining the document.
Thousands of kids nationwide without birth certificate
The session aimed at getting MPs and stakeholders involve in the civil status registration process to seek holistic solutions to concerns that has led to the phenomenon of ghost children.
It was disclosed during the session chaired by Senior Deputy Speaker, Hon. Hilarion Etong, that 1 785 668 million children representing 32.12% out of 4 942 000 million registered school going kids nationwide do not have birth certificates.
Hon. Hilarion said the situation is made worst despite numerous measures and actions taken by Government and the Civil Society, numerous challenges including: lack of interest in routinely drawing up birth and death certificates, poverty and the remoteness of certain areas which makes it difficult to give birth in a hospital; the lack of awareness among the rural population on the compulsory nature of the declaration of births within set deadlines, the insistence on gifts in kind or in cash before birth certificates are signed and issued in Councils and Civil Status Registration Centres; refusal to issue birth certificates in certain health facilities when medical fees are not paid; the complex nature and cost of the process to draw up birth certificates; high costs and complex nature of the procedures for issuing affidavits in lieu thereof, plus judicial bottlenecks, and more recently the persistent insecurity in certain regions which has made it difficult for the civil status registration centres to function normally, still undermine access to the fundamental document that is absolutely necessary for every human being.
Present at the special plenary were the ministers of Public Health, Women’s Empowerment and the Family, the Minister Delegate in the Ministry of Justice and the Minister of Decentralisation and Local Development.
Minister George Elanga Obam in a presentation during the session disclosed that there is an ongoing process at his department to modernise the civil status registration alongside a special plan to provide 500 000 children with birth certificates in the crisis-hit regions of North West, South West and Far North by the end of 2021.
Also, results of studies carried out by the Ministry of Public Health presented during the session indicated that only 67% of births are registered in the country with at least 50% of babies still delivered at home.
Ministers Manaounda Malachie of Public Health and Jean De Dieu Momo, Minister Delegate in the Ministry of Justice in separate presentations underscored the need to educate communities on the importance of obtaining birth certificates.
Generally, statistics from the National Assembly indicated that there are 275 675 pupils in Adamawa region with 112 037 of them (40.64%) without birth certificates, 957 909 in the Centre with 210 299 (22%), without the document, 375 999 in the East with 141 667 (37.67%) without, 950 023 in the Far North with 402 100 (42%) without birth certificates, same for 633 537 in Littoral with 295 481 (46.64%) without, 554 240 in the North with 294 472 (53%) without the vital document, 29 862 in North West with just 1744 (5.84%) without it, 655 083 in West with only 24 754 (3.77%) without and 158 097 in the South West with 64 114 (40.5%) without birth certificates.
Once the birth certificate is not issued at birth, it becomes very expensive. I contacted someone for the birth certificate of a two year old and was told to pay 50000frs.
ReplyDeleteHow many Cameroonian parents can afford that amount for a BC