150,000 children in the Central African Republic to benefit from birth registration

BANGUI, 14 August 2025 – At least 150,000 children in the Central African Republic will receive birth certificates as part of a new partnership between UNICEF and the European Union.

During this four-year programme, UNICEF will work with the government to increase the registration rate, particularly in Bangui, Bambari and Bouar, enabling at least 37,500 additional births to be registered each year. 

At the signing of the agreement, European Union Ambassador Diego Escalona Paturel said:
"By giving every child a legal identity, we give them a recognised place in society and the means to build their future. This partnership with UNICEF illustrates the European Union's ongoing commitment to defending fundamental rights and building a more just and inclusive future with the Central African Republic."

A key element of the project will be to strengthen links between the health sector and civil registration authorities in order to facilitate birth registration by parents at the place of birth. The project will also strengthen links with the education sector.

To achieve its objectives, the project aims to reach 500,000 parents and community members, as well as 135 health centres and 43 civil registry offices.

"Having a legal identity is a fundamental right for every child, opening doors to new opportunities and limiting exclusion," said the UNICEF Representative in CAR, Félix Ackebo. "We know what works to give tens of thousands of children a legal identity and a better chance to contribute to the country's human capital and prosperity: digitisation, simplification of procedures, free access and interoperability between health and civil registration platforms."

UNICEF will also strengthen coordination and national systems, in line with the National Development Plan. This will include targeted support to key stakeholders to remove barriers to registration, with a particular focus on children living in the most hard-to-reach areas.

In the Central African Republic, 55 per cent of children under five are not registered at birth, according to 2019 data (MICS-6).