Mora Council : Birth Registration Made Easier, Faster

“Mora Council has eased things for me. They sent civil status registration staff to my home to get the birth of my babies declared and registered to issue them birth certificates. This is three weeks after I gave birth to a set of beautiful female twins in Mora! Birth registration at home instead of the hospital or civil status registration centre is easy and very encouraging,” explains  Mrs.Ngueiandie Rose Mauricesse, 33, with a broad grin.

Birth Declaration At Home 
In her home in the

morning of October 31, 2024. As she received two civil status registration officials from Mora Council in Mayo Sava Division of the Far North Region. Present to watch the “history-making” event was her husband and a group of journalists covering field activities of “My Name” campaign launched in April 2924 by the National Civil Status Registration Office, BUNEC and the United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF. To provide fillip to birth registration across the country. 

Quicker, Faster
“Before now, birth registration took quite some time. One of the parents could be absent. Or the family might live far from the nearest civil status registration centre,” Ngueiandie Rose says. Madi Abatchoua, one of the civil status registration officers from Mora Council attending to her recalls that birth registration within the timeframe of 90 days after birth requires information such as the name of the child, the place of birth, date of birth and the photocopies of the National Identity Cards of the parents. And photocopies of the National Identity Cards of witnesses for people requesting birth certificates more than three months after birth. 

Increased Figures 
“Since October 2024 when we began reaching out to parents in their homes to register the birth of their children, the number of birth certificates issued has increased. On average we register about 30 births daily during visits to about 20 homes. Before now, by staying back in the office, we were registering 10-15 births a day,” Abatchoua points out.

Of Great Concern 
“Birth registration is a concern to all councils in the country, and especially to Mora Council because it is located in a semi-rural zone with a high ratio of illiterate parents. To these parents, the birth certificate is not a priority. We therefore have to work hard to increase the number of people seeking birth certificates for their children,” says Chetima Hamidou, Mayor of Mora. 

Bringing Them On Board 
Given that about 60 per cent of parents in Mora Council area were hitherto not bothered about getting birth certificates for their children, the authorities had to step up sensitisation. By letting parents understand that without a certificate, a child has no citizenship or nationality; and cannot effectively participate in public life. 

Incentives For Local Stakeholders 
“Our strategy involved door-to-door visits to traditional rulers and neighbourhood heads, selecting those who showed great interest in birth registration in each community as focal points to continue the campaign after our departure. Things are going well. We promised prizes at the end of the year...