Placed under the patronage of the President of the Republic, the event was organized under the auspices of Minddevel and UNICEF.
Over the past ten years, the birth registration rate has remained stagnant, yet maternity wards are still full. More than 7 million Cameroonians lack birth certificates, including almost one and a half million children in school, yet birth certificates are very important not only for the individual, but also for public policy planning.
The two-day event, which took place on Mont Nkol-Nyada, comes to a close this Saturday, April 27, 2024. The contours and objectives of the event were presented to the press last Monday at a conference given by Minister Georges Elanga Obam. The aim was to take stock of birth registration and propose solutions to the problems plaguing the sector.
At the forum's opening ceremony on Friday April 26, Minddevel Georges Elanga Obam, representing the first head of government, recalled that “the forum's importance is clear, which is why the Head of State agreed to its being held under his patronage.
The problem of 7 million Cameroonians without birth certificates, including almost one and a half million children, remains the main cause of this forum. The forum's ambition was to solve a major problem by mobilizing all the partners and players in the process to ensure that registration takes place at birth.
A number of actions have been undertaken, including the modernization of the legal framework governing the management of civil status, the digitization operations to be put in place, and awareness-raising and parent education initiatives. We hope that, at the end of the meeting, a charter will be signed, so that mayors, technical and financial partners will be the leading players everywhere”.
Several national and international partners took part in this 1st forum, presenting their achievements in the field alongside communities.
Clément Noumsi
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