Gaps in birth registration leave 150 million children ‘invisible’: UNICEF

AFP | United States

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Despite recent progress in birth registration, some 150 million children worldwide remain “invisible,” deprived of legal identity and exposed to the risk of statelessness and rights violations.

The UN children’s agency in a new report estimated that 77 percent of children under age five have had their births registered in the last five years, up two percentage points from 2019. But even with such “notable strides,” 150 million young children are in legal limbo by having not been registered, with 50 million more who have been registered but possess no official birth certificate.

Birth certificates are critical for asserting a person’s identity and age. Such proof is often essential for establishing nationality and protection from child labor, forced marriage or underage recruitment.