Plan International Organisation has urged residents of Seme sub-county in Kisumu County to apply for Birth Certificates for their children in the ongoing birth registration in the region.
The registration is currently conducted by Plan International which is a Non-Governmental Organisation, in collaboration with the area Provincial Administration as a way of bridging the gap of low birth registration in the sub-county.
Speaking to this writer, Plan International Programme Unit Manager Raphael Aoko highlighted to the area residents various importance of having a Birth Certificate.
Besides being used as child’s identity, the Certificate can be used in enrolment for various examinations in the country and allowing the holder to access services from various government institutions,” said Aoko.
He decried the higher number of children without Birth Certificate especially in Kisumu County and encouraged other stakeholders and organisations to advocate for Birth registration in the region.
Elsewhere, Aoko has advised various leaders from the county to partner in advocating for girl child rights and education.
He decried that a number of under-aged girls have been dragged into forced marriages hence ruining their future lives.
Aoko said that Plan International in collaboration with Kisumu County government has lined up measures aimed at bringing to an end forced marriages among teenage girls.
Among the measures is to arrest and prosecute those behind several challenges facing girl child. He also urged parents to allow their children to continue with studies even after escaping such forced marriages saying that it is the only way of brightening the future of those children.