Bauchi: 38 Per Cent Of Children Registered At Birth In 2021 — UNICEF

Only 38.3 per cent of under-five children in Bauchi State were registered at birth in 2021.

Dr Tushar Rane, the Chief of UNICEF, Bauchi Field Office, made this known in Bauchi in Saturday.

He said this at the beginning of a two-day planning meeting that the office is targeting birth registration for 1,080,984 under-five children in the state in 2023.

According to him, birth registration is an essential tool for protecting children’s rights; for planning and for the promotion of development and citizenship.

“According to the 2021 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey, birth registration of Under-five children was at 38.3 per cent in Bauchi state.

“In 2022, a joint UNICEF and government performance review took place and Bauchi State was found to be one of the lowest performers in birth registration,’’ he said.

Also speaking, Matthew Temidayo, National Director, Department of Civil Registration and Vital Statistics, National Population Commission (NPC), said the 2023 exercise would be conducted in the 20 local government areas of Bauchi State.

He said the NPC would engage volunteers at ward levels to conduct the 2023 birth registration of the Under-fives.

“Volunteers would be drawn from wards to gain residents’ trust and compliance for a hitch free exercise,’’ he explained.

Commenting at the meeting, Ali Babayo, Permanent Secretary, Bauchi State Ministry of Health, reiterated the state government’s commitment to improve healthcare services.

He commended UNICEF and other stakeholders for supporting activities around birth registration and other healthcare programmes.