Every Child’s Birth Right: Inequities and trends in birth registration

UNICEF’s new report ‘Every Child’s Birth Right: Inequities and trends in birth registration’, presents a global assessment of birth registration levels. Birth registration is a critical first step towards protecting children throughout their lives. This report shows that the births of nearly 230 million children under-five have never been registered, approximately 1 in 3 of all children under-five around the world. This means that  they do not legally exist before the law. These children are at risk of exclusion, exploitation and may have difficulty accessing services.

The publication presents latest available data and estimates on birth registration in 161 countries. It also highlights global and regional trends and examines inequities in prevalence according to social, economic, demographic and other characteristics. A section on programmatic and advocacy efforts undertaken by UNICEF and its partners is also included.