The absence of birth certificates for nearly four in every 10 children in Ghana is raising concerns about the country’s ability to plan effectively for their healthcare, education and other essential needs.
Andy Brooks, UNICEF Representative to Ghana, has warned that low birth registration rates are leaving thousands of children without legal identity and making them less visible in the national statistics used to guide development policies.
Speaking at the Eighth International Research Conference of the University of Ghana’s College of Humanities, Brooks said available data indicated that only about 61 per cent of Ghanaian children had birth certificates.
He stressed that birth registration was essential to ensuring every child was officially recognised and included in national development planning.
According to him, children who are not registered risk being overlooked when governments and development partners make decisions about the distribution of resources and the delivery of social services.
“The children are not being counted, and if they are not being counted, planners are unable to provide the right level of health, education and other social services for them,” he said.
Brooks illustrated the challenge by recounting a recent visit to Boapasi in the Eastern Region, where he found that only a handful of children among hundreds gathered in the community had birth certificates.
He attributed the low registration levels partly to weak telecommunications connectivity and limited access to digital registration services in remote communities. He called for targeted interventions to address these barriers.
The UNICEF representative also emphasised the importance of research and reliable data in identifying inequalities and ensuring that vulnerable groups receive the support they need.
The conference, held under the theme, “Inclusion as a Global Imperative: Confronting Inequality and Advancing Equity, Justice and Innovation in a Fragmenting World,” brought together researchers and other stakeholders to exchange knowledge and discuss policy issues.
Professor Samuel Arday Codjoe, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research, Innovation and Development at the University of Ghana and chairperson of the conference, supported the call for stronger data systems.
He noted that previous research using Ghana Demographic and Health Survey data had revealed important patterns in birth registration.
Professor Codjoe also referred to a postgraduate study supervised at the University of Ghana, which found that factors including gender, ethnicity, marital status and religion influenced the likelihood of a child’s birth being registered.
One of the study’s notable findings, he said, was that children born to Muslim mothers were significantly more likely to be registered than those born to Christian mothers.
He said the finding highlighted the need for further research into the behavioural and cultural factors that influence birth registration.
Professor Codjoe encouraged researchers to revisit the issue using data from the latest demographic and health survey, reaffirming the university’s commitment to research that informs public policy and improves social outcomes.
Birth registration is the official recording of a child’s birth by the state and provides the foundation for legal identity. Although Ghana’s Births and Deaths Registry has expanded digital registration and public awareness initiatives in recent years, gaps remain, particularly in rural and underserved communities.
The concerns raised by UNICEF and University of Ghana researchers underline the importance of improving registration coverage so that more children are recognised in official records and included in decisions that affect their lives.
