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Background and Justification ย
In 2025, UNICEF released a report highlighting significant progress in civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) across sub-Saharan Africa, with over 60 million children under the age of five having their births registered over the past five years. While this achievement is commendable, it also draws attention to the urgent challenge that remains: an estimated 60 million children are still unregistered, with the highest concentrationโ43 millionโresiding in Eastern Africa.ย
The challenges of birth registration in Eastern and Southern Africa (ESAR), are multifaceted and deeply interconnected. Key barriers include weak interoperability between CRVS and health, education, social protection, and identity management systems, which limits timely and continuous registration. Outdated and often discriminatory legal and policy frameworks, coupled with complex and burdensome registration procedures, disproportionately exclude vulnerable populations such as children born outside health facilities, those in rural or remote areas, stateless children, and children of unmarried mothers. Operational capacity remains limited, particularly at the local level, due to insufficient decentralisation, inadequate staffing, and poor infrastructure. Digitalisation efforts are often fragmented and under-resourced, with countries facing challenges related to system interoperability, data security, and vendor dependence. In conflict-affected or disaster-prone areas, CRVS systems are further strained by displacement, service disruption, and the loss of vital records. Together, these challenges create systemic gaps that hinder universal and equitable access to birth registration in the region.ย
To address these challenges, there is a clear need for a dedicated regional technical support mechanism that can provide countries with structured and responsive assistance. Such a mechanism would build national capacity, enhance cross-sectoral collaboration, and support the adoption of innovative, context-appropriate solutions. It would also facilitate peer