'Ensure birth registration for all children'

The birth registration is essential to ensuring child and civil rights, preventing early marriage, eliminating child labour and issuing passports and other documents, they said.

In Bangladesh, 67 lakh children, out of six crore, have been registered so far, the speakers said at the launching ceremony of the Universal Birth Registration of Plan Bangladesh at the LGED Bhaban in the city.

They also said 41 percent of 50 million children born a year worldwide do not have birth registration and 98 percent of them are from developing countries.

Children without papers are denied of their rights and legal entity, and national plans and strategies may not match population requirement if births are not registered, they added.

Speaking as the chief guest, LGRD and Cooperatives Minister Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan stressed the need for local government's involvement in the process to ensure that all children are registered.

Edward Thomas Espey, country director, Plan Bangladesh, said the Plan's approach enables children's voices to be heard and that's why it works with children to build a better future.

Zinnat Afroz, social development advisor of Plan Bangladesh, said lack of awareness among the people is a major obstacle to the registration programme.

Representatives from Unicef, Union Parishad chairmen and government officials also spoke at the ceremony.

The Plan Bangladesh helped Mogolhat Union of Lalmonirhat district achieve 100 percent coverage in terms of birth registration.

It has also been working in Dinajpur, Nilphamari and Gazipur.