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Rabat – The Moroccan Ministry for Human Rights launched on Monday the second phase of a national campaign to register children for civil status, to ensure their full access to civil rights.
Registration means the official recording of a child’s birth by the government.
The first phase of the program was delivered in partnership with UNICEF from September 2017 to May 2018 and led to the registration of 23,151 people across the country, of which 85% e were minors.
The purpose of the program is to ensure that all Moroccans enjoy their constitutional right to civil recognition (stated in Article 71 of the constitution). The campaign’s slogan states, “Registration for civil status is a constitutional right. I am registered therefore I am.”
Read Also: UNICEF: Moroccan Media Do Poorly in Educating Children
In April 2018, the Deputy Minister for Parliamentary and Civil Relations Mustapha El Khalfi announced that 83,682 Moroccans did not have a civil status. The first phase of the registration campaign set up 2110 registration offices and 1941 mobile registration units across Morocco to address the issue.
Phase two of the program focuses on registering four categories of children: children in the education system, children outside the education system, children benefiting from social welfare institutions (like abandoned children or children in difficult family situations), and children in welfare centers.
Registration is not only a legal acknowledgement of a child’s existence. As emphasized by UNICEF, it is central to ensuring children have access to health, social security, and education. The UN body also insists on protecting children from child labour, trafficking, and child marriage.
The registration campaign is part of the ministry’s broader implementation of the National Action Plan for Democracy and Human Rights (PANDDH), which promotes democracy and the protection of human rights through legislative measures, awareness campaigns, and other reinforcement measures.
