The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development emphasizes legal identity for all, with Target 16.9 focused on universal birth registration. The Regional Action Framework reinforces this through three targets:
- 1A: Registering births within one year of occurrence,
- 1B: Registering births for children under five, and
- 1C: Registering births for all individuals.
Target 2A further calls for issuing a birth certificate for every birth registered within one year.
Timely registration (Target 1A) is crucial for ensuring individual rights, enabling access to services, and producing accurate vital statistics. Late registration undermines data reliability and service planning. Birth certificates (Target 2A) serve as legal proof of identity, essential for accessing services and obtaining additional documents. Increasingly, these are issued digitally.
By 2024, significant progress was made:
- 26 ESCAP members met national targets for timely birth registration (1A),
- 37 achieved issuance of birth certificates (2A),
- 26 reached universal registration for children under five (1B), a rise from 11 in 2019.
However, challenges persist. An estimated 14 million infants remained unregistered in 2024. South and South-West Asia had the largest number of unregistered children under five, although the greatest absolute reduction in numbers occurred there as well. The Pacific has the highest proportion of unregistered children due to geographic and administrative barriers.
Governments have implemented significant reforms under the CRVS Decade (2015–2024), including digitalization, legal reforms, health sector integration, and outreach. Examples include Bangladesh’s multisectoral CRVS strategy and the Philippines’ National CRVS Decade and dedicated CRVS Month.
Digitalization has enhanced registration systems. For instance, Iran and Azerbaijan have introduced integrated systems and electronic certificates. Other countries like Papua New Guinea are transitioning to digital signatures to address registration backlogs.
The Regional Action Framework recommends eight implementation steps and seven action areas to support universal registration, including national CRVS coordination mechanisms, inequality assessments, and multisectoral strategies. These have helped identify gaps and support inclusive reforms.
Despite improvements, data gaps—especially for Target 1C—limit monitoring. Censuses and surveys complement CRVS data to assess coverage and inform strategies. Universal registration also requires inclusion of non-citizens, persons with disabilities, and stateless individuals. By 2024, 78 per cent of ESCAP members allowed non-citizens to register vital events, and 62 per cent made registration accessible to people with disabilities.
Ultimately, achieving universal birth registration requires sustained political will, investment in CRVS systems, cross-sectoral collaboration, and a strong focus on inclusivity to ensure no one is left behind.