Getting children and youth in the picture, A report on the Consultations with children and young people on the civil registration and vital statistics

This report presents the views, experiences, and recommendations of 561 children and youth from 11 countries across Asia and the Pacific on civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS), gathered through a series of discussions and consultations from March to April 2021. Views and experiences of children highlighted that CRVS verifies their identity, citizenship, and allows them to exercise their rights. The in-country consultations revealed “institutional flaws as barriers to registration such as a lack of coordination between government offices, and a lack of capacity and infrastructure in CRVS- related organizations”. Social hurdles are an important factor which prevent them from CRVS. The impact of lack of registration shows that the challenges that children and youth have in registering stem not only from the processes, but also from the consequences of not registering, affecting their engagement in society: “No registration equals no protection” and “no registration means no essential services”. Finally, recommendations stress on the importance of educating communities and streamline registration processes. A collective effort is required, as « Birth, marriage, and death certificates aren’t just documents, but rather show how much the government and parents care about the children and their future ». CHIP fully supports these recommendations in particular, the call to make birth, marriage, and death registration easily accessible, free, and without erroneous information.

Source: https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/CRVS%20Report%20Draft_final.pdf