Consider children born in SA, Govt urged

Loveness Mpofu, Sunday News Reporter
THE Government must extend its programme to offer free birth certificates to Zimbabwean children who were born outside the country especially in South Africa, an official has said.

Most children of Zimbabweans born outside the country especially South Africa have been facing problems in acquiring birth certificates due to the numerous documentation required and the $50 fee.

Zimbabwe National Council for the Welfare of Children Mr Taylor Nyanhete said the initiative to ensure Zimbabweans have documents which is underway in preparation for next year’s general elections must be extended to children who were born outside the country.

“We thank the Government for opening the window for free access of identity documents, but the emerging issue is that many children will not benefit from basic services offered by the Government because they don’t have these documents. We appeal to the Government to extend free access to birth certificates to children born in South Africa, so that they can also exercise their rights,” he said.

Mr Nyanhete said this during the Zimbabwe Child Rights Coalition Conference, held at a hotel in Bulawayo last week. The conference ran under the theme “SDGs and Children’s Rights: Active and Meaningful Child Participation are Key in Achieving the SDGs”.

As part of other measures of acknowledging children’s rights, Mr Nyanhete said there was need for the Government to increase budget for projects catering for children such as BEAM, which have been a safety net to ensure that children stay in school and do not suffer from poverty. Mr Nyanhete added that more budgetary allocations should be channelled towards children living with disabilities.

“Studies that have been done in establishing the number of disabled people by ZimStat says seven percent of the country’s population is disabled, but global statistics say it’s 10 percent. This means that many disabled people are left out in programming because their statistics are not known, as well as the state of their disabilities,” he said.

Chief Nonhlanhla Ncube of Filabusi, Insiza district said as chiefs they help children who do not have their fathers to get birth certificates by testifying for them. She said they also help children to pay fees.

“We also fight against child marriages in the district. Last year, I arrested three families, in Fort Rixon, who had married off their children because they got pregnant out of wedlock. That is abuse because that child will be still young and not yet mature for marriage. It also takes away their childhood happiness,” she said.

Chief Mabhikwa of Lupane said chiefs were the custodians of land so it was their duty to protect children in rural areas and help them access proper education.

“We have to make sure that young people are protected because children are growing up in an environment where there is great influence of the media, but we have to make sure that children know their roots and do not adopt foreign cultures,” he said. -@lvydvy1