An important step forward in improving population statistics and civil registration for Malawi has been taken in Blantyre. A completely renovated office, dedicated to birth registration and the issuing of certificates, has been officially handed over to the administration of Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
Thanks to the Community of Sant'Egidio's BRAVO! programme and German Cooperation, hospital staff will now have a modern and efficient space to register new births and issue certificates immediately. This service will simplify the process, reduce waiting times and improve the overall experience for families. From now on, mothers will be able to go home with their baby's birth certificate, even before being discharged from the hospital. This innovation will make demographic statistics more reliable and accurate, and will also guarantee that every child is legally recognised right from birth, thus protecting his or her rights and identity.
Potipher Magombo, national coordinator of the BRAVO! programme, expressed great satisfaction with the result achieved: ‘We are proud to have contributed to improving the birth registration process. Every child has the right to an identity, and our commitment is to ensure that no one is forgotten’.
The hospital administration has also enthusiastically welcomed the new office, emphasising its importance for improving the services offered. ‘This facility will allow us to register births more quickly and efficiently’, said Dr Sipho Nyasulu, administrative manager of the hospital. ‘We thank Sant'Egidio and the BRAVO! programme for their support and generosity’.
The opening of the birth registration office is a concrete example of how collaboration and shared commitment can make a difference. Thanks to the BRAVO! programme, thousands of children have already obtained a legal identity, which is fundamental for accessing education, healthcare and social protection.
In many countries around the world, failure to register a child at birth exposes them to enormous risks: human trafficking, exploitation, early marriage, child labour and even recruitment into armed conflicts. Furthermore, without a birth certificate, it is impossible to access basic services and have one's rights recognised. The BRAVO! programme of Sant'Egidio has been working to guarantee African children legal recognition of their existence, in line with Article 7 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Registration at birth is not just a bureaucratic formality, but an act of justice and protection that paves the way to future opportunities.
