Nouakchott (Mauritania), 07 December 2017 (ECA) - The Fourth Conference of African Ministers Responsible for Civil Registration kicked-off today, Thursday in Nouakchott, Mauritania. It was preceded by a meeting of experts on December 4, 2017.
Organized by the African Union Commission in collaboration with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the African Development Bank (AfDB) and other partners, among which are UNICEF and WHO; this conference will deliberate on the recommendations of the meeting of experts, and provide general policy guidance for the Secretariat of the Africa Program on Accelerated Improvement of Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (APAI-CRVS) on the following: the CRVS improvement process, focusing on implementation at country levels, particularly in the context of the Agendas 2030 and 2063; the strategic move to revitalize the APAI-CRVS through a systematic review and improved coordination, monitoring and reporting; and the endorsement of the CRVS strategic plan (2017-2021) and the approval of the setting-up of “Africa CRVS Systems Improvement Fund”.
In his opening address, the Prime Minister of Mauritania, Yahya Ould Hademina, emphasized that “Civil status data is of paramount importance in improving the lives of our citizens”. He was accompanied by the Minister of Interior and Decentralization, Mr. Ahmedou Ould Abdallah; and the Minister of Health, Dr. Boubacar Kane.
Mr. Olivier Chinganya, representing Ms. Vera Songwe, Executive Secretary of the ECA, stated: “I am more than happy to be here and to be part of the discussions on this very important topic, a driving force of our cultural identity and development (...) I am convinced that it is possible to achieve the change we aspire for in this decade 2017-2026: a decade for repositioning CRVS systems in Africa.”
The African Union Commissioner of Economic Affairs, Victor Harrison congratulated the Mauritanian Government, for having “taken a political commitment and deployed the necessary know-how, which explains why Mauritania is the leading African country in terms of Civil Registration.”
Organized under the theme: "Accelerating a coordinated improvement of Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) for the implementation and monitoring of development in Africa: A review of progress and the way forward," the overall objective of this conference is to consider the possible ways of making strategic shifts to move the Africa Program on Accelerated Improvement of Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (APAI-CRVS) to the next level of maturity, by taking stock of its achievements and identifying the challenges.
Ministers in charge of Civil Registration and of Health from several African countries, and representatives of the African Union Commission, ECA, AfDB and several other guests are in attendance.
For more information, please contact:
United Nations Economic Commission for Africa
Tahirou Gouro | Communication Officer, ECA- SRO/WA | Economic Commission for Africa | Email: gouro2@un.org
African Union Commission
Djeinaba Kane | Communication Officer | African Union Commission | Email: KaneD@africa-union.org