Lagos State to Begin E-birth Registration from September

Lagos State will embark on a major initiative with the launch of the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (ECRVS) program starting September 2, 2024

This digital platform aims to streamline birth registration processes, ensuring that every child born in Lagos is counted and protected under the law.

The National Population Commission (NPC), in collaboration with the Lagos State government, has been preparing for this launch by training ad hoc registrars across various local governments.

Federal Commissioner representing Lagos State, Mrs. Saidat Oladunjoye, emphasized the importance of this exercise during the opening of the training at Kosofe Local Government.

She stated, "This exercise is to train our ad hoc officials who will handle the registration of births, to ensure we have accurate data of children born in Lagos State."

The e-birth registration system is designed to capture children under one year old at hospitals and other non-governmental institutions where births occur, while children under five years old will be registered at community and ward levels.

This initiative is crucial as it will automatically generate a National Identification Number (NIN) for each registered child, facilitating their access to essential services such as healthcare and education.

UNICEF Child Protection Specialist, Denis Onoise, highlighted the broader implications of this initiative, noting that birth registration is a permanent and official record of a child's existence, providing legal recognition of their identity.

He explained, "We want to make birth registration faster, hence, the reason we are going digital." The integration of birth registration with health and national identity management systems will also capture all immunization activities and records for the child, further enhancing the efficiency of service delivery.