The National Identification Management Commission (NIMC) in partnership with the Yobe State Primary Healthcare Management Board (YPHMB) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has pledged to boost births registration services in the 17 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state.

According to the commission, the collaboration among the healthcare agency, UNICEF and LGAs, will focus on social mobilisation aimed at raising demands for birth registration in each of the 178 wards in Yobe.

The sensitisation births registration which was organised by the Yobe State Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs (LGCA) is being supported by the UN agency.

Other organisations that will support the commission and state’s health board include the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), and the civil society organisations (CSOs) in the state and other border communities with Niger.

While declaring the birth registration campaign open on Monday in Damaturu, the Commissioner of LGCA, represented by Alhaji Mohammed Lamba emphasised the state government’s commitment to protecting children by enhancing social mobilization for birth registration across the state.

He added that the state government is exceeding citizens’ expectations in various sector, while stressing the importance of the “regular data collation” for what he described as, “future development planning in the various sectors of the economy of state.”

Lamba urged the LGAs, traditional and community leaders to intensify their efforts by ensuring the success of the birth registration initiative.

“You are to encourage the thousands of households to participate by fully engaging family members in the discussions and relay the births registration messages to the grassroots,” he said.

The UNICEF Child Protection Specialist, Bukar Mohammed underscored the alarming statistics regarding the abandoning of babies in Potiskum and Bade LGAs.

He called on the stakeholders to identify and support caregivers to overcome this challenge in the various communities.

Malam Modu of the National Population Commission (NPC), in a paper he presented at the event, reiterated the importance of birth registration with an electronic registration processes.

Bashir Isa, the Head of Civic Birth Registration (CBRs) in Yobe, provided useful insights into the births registration services rendered by the State’s healthcare board.

The engagement of stakeholders by the commission and UNICEF aimed to garner more efforts towards heightened awareness and action for birth registration and improve the welfare and protect the rights of children.