The National Population Commission says targeted birth registration efforts have reached more than 14.5 million children across Nigeria.

The commission said this in a joint statement with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), according to a statement on Monday to commemorate the 2026 Africa Civil Registration and Vital Statistics Day.

The organisations said the effort was part of Nigeria’s drive to ensure that every child was registered at birth and recognised before the law.

The targeted registration efforts have reached children in rural, hard-to-reach and humanitarian settings, with services increasingly linked to health facilities and community outreach initiatives.

Bayelsa, Gombe, Jigawa, Taraba, Kebbi, Niger and Zamfara are strengthening linkages between health facilities and community registration services, according to the statement.

The NPC chairman, Aminu Yusuf, said the commission’s priority was to ensure that every child was counted, protected and recognised before the law.

The organisations said birth registration provided a child’s first legal recognition by the state and laid the foundation for access to healthcare, education and social protection. They added that registration generated vital demographic data required for effective planning, service delivery and national development.

The statement said Nigeria was strengthening its CRVS system through collaboration among the NPC, NIMC, ALGON, development partners and communities. It said digitalisation and stronger integration between civil registration and identity management systems were improving the efficiency, accessibility and reliability of registration services.

The director-general of NIMC, Abisoye Coker-Odusote, said integrated digital identity systems would provide a seamless pathway from birth through adulthood.

“Integrated digital identity systems create a seamless pathway for individuals from birth through adulthood, while improving access to services and strengthening governance,” she said.

The organisations said local governments remained critical to expanding registration services and creating awareness at the community level.

The national president of ALGON, Bello Lawal, said decentralisation was essential to reaching children in underserved communities.

The chairman of the House Committee on NPC, Okunjimi Odimayo, restated the importance of sustained political commitment to strengthening CRVS systems.

“Strong civil registration and vital statistics systems support better planning, more effective service delivery and improved development outcomes for all Nigerians,” Mr Odimayo said.

The statement, however, noted that significant challenges remained across Africa, with current estimates indicating that only about half of children under five years in sub-Saharan Africa were registered at birth.

It said the region accounted for the largest share of unregistered children globally, underscoring the need for continued investment in CRVS systems.

The UNICEF representative in Nigeria, Wafaa Abdelatef, described birth registration as essential to protecting children’s rights and ensuring that no child remained invisible.

“Birth registration is far more than a certificate. It is a gateway to protection, services and opportunity,” Mr Abdelatef said.

She said UNICEF would continue working with the federal government and other partners to strengthen integrated, decentralised and digitalised registration systems that ensure every child is counted, protected and able to access their rights.

(NAN)