Cameroon councils begin issuance of digital birth certificates

Some local councils in the North West and South West Regions of Cameroon have issued first copies of digital birth certificates in a move that signals a renewed push for universal birth registration in the country.

The Limbe I Council is among about a dozen local government bodies which are being supported to issue these digital birth certificates under a project implemented by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), according to a blog article by the UN agency.

Dubbed “Contributing to Social Cohesion Efforts in the Far North, North West and South West Regions,” the initiative has funding support from the Danish government.

Supported by the National Civil Registration Office (BUNEC), the project aims to strengthen the civil registration systems of the concerned councils by upgrading and modernizing their infrastructure. The three regions are all affected by security challenges, which have led to displacements.

“I was surprised by how easy everything was. There were no long delays, no fear that documents would get lost, and I did not have to pay anything. My child now has an identity from the very beginning,” a parent, Alain Njoku, is quoted as saying.

Njoku is one of many parents who have been able to receive birth certificates for their children thanks in large part to the digitization of the civil registration system of these councils.

“We are proud to be pioneering the digitalization of civil status documents in the South West Region. Digitalization helps us serve our population better by making our services more transparent, more reliable, and more accessible, especially for the most vulnerable” the Mayor of Limbe I Council, Mbwaye Eposi, said.

Another council worker, Nga Ngono Doris, is quoted as testifying that with the new system, their workload has substantially reduced and there’s no need for so much paper work in issuing a birth certificate. Archiving of birth certificates, she added, has also become easier.

Cameroon enacted a new legislation on civil registration in December 2024, with the introduction of several reforms intended to streamline birth registration which is a critical foundation for obtaining legal identity.

Among the novelties in the legislation is the introduction of digital birth certificates which shall have the same legal worth as physical ones.

BUNEC recently also partnered with Liber Technologies to enhance civil registration digitization reforms.

Article Topics

Africa  |  birth registration  |  Cameroon  |  civil registration  |  digital birth certificate  |  digital ID  |  identity management  |  legal identity  |  National Civil Status Registration Office (BUNEC)  |  UNDP