Addis Ababa, 10 August 2022 (ECA) – In commemorating the fifth Africa Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) Day, the Economic Commission for Africa ECA was invited to the celebration of Africa CRVS Day by the Government of Ethiopia. Under the theme "Harnessing coordination, country leadership and ownership to strengthen integrated civil registration and vital statistics systems: a vehicle for #CountingEveryone".
Speaking about the significance of CRVS systems in Africa, Oliver Chinganya, Director of the African Centre for Statistics, ECA, emphasized the "central role of CRVS systems in governance and economic development and the significance of the CRVS system for individuals in their daily social, political, and economic lives."
Mr Chinganya outlined the priorities identified by the African Programme for Accelerated Improvement of CRVs as crucial for driving the progress of CRVs systems across the continent. Firstly, urging governments across Africa to establish or maintain inter-agency coordination committees that regularly convene all relevant stakeholders in the CRVS and identification ecosystems to strengthen and promote such systems and the use of their data across government services. Secondly, to establish linkages between CRVS systems and other systems, such as identity management and health and social protection systems which are critical entry points for civil registration and vital statistics—advancing the digitization of civil registration data as part of the critical digital public infrastructure. Thereby promoting the management and use of such data and strengthening the legal and regulatory framework governing CRVS. And finally, creating identification systems to ensure inclusivity and universality, promote greater intergovernmental collaboration and ease the use of CRVS data across government sectors.
The theme for this year's Africa CRVS Day also underscored the need for a sustained political commitment at the country level, with African governments taking leadership and ownership in transforming and strengthening their respective civil registration systems.
The day marks the twelfth year since the establishment of the Africa Programme on Accelerated Improvement of Civil Registration and Vital Statistics Systems (APAI-CRVS). A continental framework designed to provide coordinated and integrated support to African countries in strengthening their CVRS systems. This ECA flagship programme aims to address the paucity of these systems on the continent and fulfil the commitment of 100% registration of births and at least 80% registration of deaths as outlined by the global 2030 sustainable development agenda. CRVS systems confer legal identity to individuals and inform good governance, protecting human rights and creating inclusive societies. They also increase the credibility of national and local governments by enhancing their capacity to deliver social services by helping identify which services are needed where and by whom.
On Africa CRVS Day, leaders in governments across Africa are encouraged to make advances in systems thinking, demographic analysis, digital technologies as well as their legal and regulatory frameworks to improve the foundation of their digital public infrastructure and overall systems.
Mr. Chinganya encouraged all Member States to attend the sixth Conference of African Ministers responsible for Civil Registration, which will be held in Addis Ababa from 24 to 28 October 2022 under the theme: “A decade into APAI-CRVS: Reflecting on progress and accelerating efforts towards 2030 through transformed systems.”
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