A total of 7,560 children, born between January and June this year in the Upper East Region, have not been registered by the Births and Deaths Registry.
The Registrar of the Births and Deaths Registry, Samuel Adom Botchway, described the situation as worrying, explaining that while the Ghana Health Service (GHS) recorded 20,412 births during the period, the registry only managed to register 12,852 births, leaving a gap of 7,560.
“We are not even talking about births in homes, but in hospitals where our officers can easily obtain data, yet there is this huge deficit. This is clearly against the President’s vision for the registry, which is that every child born now till 2028 is registered and issued a birth certificate,” he stated.
When Mr. Botchway visited the area as part of his nationwide tour to evaluate the state of the work, comprehend the difficulties officers encounter, and develop solutions, he voiced concerns.
According to him, the Upper East Region has so far recorded 36.9% of the anticipated births, and if they continue at their current rate, it will be challenging for them to reach the goal unless they come up with plans to make up the difference.
He registered and signed a newborn baby’s certificate while he was at the registry’s regional office, calling it a privilege. He also encouraged parents to register their newborns and share the information with their communities.
He claimed that since it was free to register children from birth to age twelve, parents were encouraged to use the program, adding that, “the birth certificate issued to infants is the official document while the green one provided later is merely a certified copy.”
The Registrar also voiced concern over Ghana’s shockingly low death registration rate, which was barely 15% for the first half of the year.
He stated that it was illegal for someone to pass away without being registered and having a burial permission approved.
He also mentioned that many deaths, especially in rural regions, remained unreported because families buried their loved ones without following the proper procedures.
He stated that in order to resolve this, the registry was working closely with assembly members to ensure compliance while reviewing some parts of the Births and Deaths Act in conjunction with the Ministry of Local Government.
NKONKONSA.com
