Registration
By Aisha Gambo
The National Orientation Agency (NOA) in collaboration with the National Population Commission (NPC) on Monday began a community dialogue in Zaria Local Government Area (LGAs), Kaduna on the importance of birth registration.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the community dialogue was supported by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Kaduna state government.
Yusuf Muhammed-Balarabe, UNICEF focal person, NOA Kaduna, stated that the community dialogue was aimed at reorienting communities on an improved birth registration and also to register children aged zero to five.
He noted that the agency would support the National Population Commission in ensuring that 18,000 children were registered in 30 local communities of Jema’a, Kaduna South and Zaria LGAs.
He urged participants to bring their children for registration and pass the information learned to their family and friends who were not able to make it for the community dialogue.
Earlier, Nasir Muhammad-Shafi’i, assistant comptroller NPC, Zaria, said that “we are here to sensitise people to register their children aged zero to five and get them a birth certificate’’.
According to him, the birth certificate issued by NPC was the only birth certificate recognised constitutionally and would help the government in getting accurate data on the number of births.
“Zaria has 10 wards where parents are being sensitised on the importance of acquiring a birth certificate from the NPC’’, he said.
Similarly, Aminu Alhassan, NOA community mobilisation officer at Zaria, stated that 10 communities in the local government would be reached and children who were not registered due to COVID-19 lockdown would be registered.
He mentioned that the ten communities to be reached were; Kwarbai,Gyallesu, Dakace, Bizara Tudun wada,Unguwar alkali, Kaura,Unguwan juma, Tukur-Tukur A and B with 11 registration centres.
Umar Lawal a community member said that many were not aware of the birth registration done by NPC but with the coming of NOA, people are now aware and would register their children.
Another community member Aisha Shitu, said she had assumed that the birth certificate given in hospitals after birth was sufficient adding that she had now realised the need to register her children with the NPC.
“By the grace of God, I will come along with my two children to get them registered’’, she said.
NAN reports that the exercise would last for 10 days.
Edited by Sani Idris Abdulrahman
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