UNICEF: Improving birth registration in Côte d'Ivoire (Fr.)

ABIDJAN, Côte d'Ivoire, 2 June 2009 Its Tuesday morning and the children of the heavily populated neighbourhood of Abobo are warming up for a day of study.

Once they pass fifth grade, they will have to present their Birth Registration papers. This means that at least half of them will not be able to present the state exams and continue their schooling. These statistics get worse in the North and Northwest of the country, where UNICEF estimates that up to six children out of ten are unregistered.

Children forced from school because of their lack of status often wind up working as labourers, mechanics or seamstresses. Yet many children left to their own devises slip off the grid and slide under the radar.

With elections scheduled for later this year, there is already attention towards the administrative status of adults. UNICEF has developed a plan that would work on a strategic national level to register millions of children.

We would start with 150,000 children, says Ms. Hirvonen, working with government and our partners, and we will try to improve the civil registry system, and also strengthen the system at the community level, so its more accessible to the population.

In the meantime, UNICEF is preparing to unroll their new plan and give an identity to the future of Côte d'Ivoire one child at a time.

To read the full story, visit http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/cotedivoire_49867.html

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• UNICEF
• Côte
• d'Ivoire
• birth
• registration
• children
• education
• schools
• protection

[Sigy5]

huh didn´t understand a word but still cool that you posted this video

[AndyRiotRed]

Thanks for sharing - go UNICEF!