This statement has been drafted in consultation with, and is delivered on behalf of, a wide range of NGOs and attempts to reflect the diversity of views within the NGO community.

Madam Chair,

As NGOs, we welcome the opportunity to comment on the preparation of ExCom conclusions, not only as interested civil society, but also based on the expertise that our field experience gives us.

NGOs, therefore, urge ExCom members to adopt a conclusion this year on birth registration for people of concern to UNHCR. Birth registration is an essential element of child protection and the protection of families, vital for safeguarding family unity and supporting reunification.

In our work on the ground, we see that birth registration among children of concern is unacceptably low. Baseline data from UNHCR’s Global Strategic Priorities show that in the 103 refugee camps surveyed in 2009, only 46% of children are registered or given a birth certificate. That is, more than half of the children lack formal evidence of their identity - evidence instrumental to protection and to finding durable solutions, whether integration, resettlement, or return.

The negative effects of lack of birth registration are both immediate and last beyond childhood. Without birth registration, children and adults cannot have officially recognised documents, risk not having a legal identity, or even being stateless. They often cannot access even basic services, protection, or recourse against abuse or violations of their rights. This situation is especially discriminatory because this same lack of legal identity exponentially increases their vulnerability to exploitation, human trafficking, and even civil and criminal enforcement measures that have nothing to do with any fault of their own, including arbitrary and indefinite detention and deportation.

There is hardly an easier remedy to much of this vulnerability than straightforward birth registration. It is important to be clear that we are not talking about a declaration of nationality, we are not talking about a status with special rights, we are talking simply about a formal document that says I was born.

To read the complete NGO statement, please see the pdf document below.

Joint NGO statement on birth registration (89.54 KB)