What is the state of birth registration in the country?
Birth registration in the Philippines faced significant challenges, with a notable number of children not registered. According to the Philippines Statistics Authority, approximately 3 million Filipino children still do not have birth certificates as 7.5 million people in the country remained unregistered.
How is this affecting Filipino children?
This lack of birth registration poses a serious obstacle to Filipino children’s access to education, healthcare, social benefits, and legal protection. Without a legal identity, these children may encounter difficulties in proving their age, nationality, and parentage, hindering their ability to fully participate in society and gain protection under the law.
The ramifications of unregistered births extend beyond individual children, negatively impacting the nation as a whole. The absence of proper documentation hampers the government’s ability to plan and allocate resources effectively for the needs of its population, as accurate population data is crucial for developing targeted policies and programs.
How is ChildFund Philippines addressing the pressing issue on birth registration?
In partnership with Child Rights Network and other partner organizations and government champions, ChildFund Philippines spearheads the Birth Registration campaign in the country, advocating for #UniversalBirthRegistrationNow. The campaign’s primary objective is to advocate for the implementation of comprehensive and responsive policies within the national Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) system. This system will gather essential data on births, marriages, adoptions, deaths, and causes of death, ensuring a complete and accurate record of the population. Moreover, it aims to establish an efficient linkage between the registration of vital events and the provision of fundamental social services such as education and healthcare. By achieving these goals, the campaign seeks to facilitate evidence-informed program planning and enable effective and responsive initiatives that improve the well-being of the Filipino population.