7 billion on Earth: are we so sure...?
On October 31, the world population is projected to surpass 7 billion but with millions of unregistered newborns every year, how can we be sure?
Estimates – because they can only be estimates – suggest that 51 million children, i.e. one in three across the world, go unregistered each year. Twenty three million are believed to be in South Asia alone while only a third of children under five years old are registered in Sub-Saharan Africa. Without proof of identity, those children have no legal existence and are invisible to the authorities.
Dramatic consequences for millions of children
Lack of identity – a basic human right – leads to dramatic consequences for children. In many countries, children without a birth certificate may not be able to attend secondary education. In West Africa for instance, children need a proof of identity to sit for national exams at the end of primary school. Unregistered children can also be denied access to health service such as immunisation programmes. When they get older, they may find it harder to get an identity card or passport preventing them from having a normal life, working and travelling legally.
Individuals are not the only ones to be affected. For states, having a proportion of their population that is not officially registered as citizens has major implications. Without a functioning civil registration system, countries are not able to count their population on a regular basis or predict trends such as rising birth and death rates. Governments and donors are unable to estimate what services such as schools and hospitals are needed, which can lead to under-resourcing of local services and uneven distribution of aid funding.
So we might be able to declare the birth of Baby 7 Billion but do we really know how many people do live in that particular state in India, or this big town in China or this district in Burkina Faso? Maybe it’s time to stop looking at the big picture, and the big numbers, and start thinking about all these newborns across the world who won’t receive a birth certificate.
Plan’s celebrations for Baby 7 Billion in India
Plan has shown that solutions do not need to be expensive, yet the impact can be great. Since 2005, Plan has helped to register more than 40 million people, mostly children, by working with governments, local authorities and partners, communities and children.
On October 31, Plan is celebrating the birth of a girl as the world’s 7 billionth child. In an event held outside Lucknow, the capital of India’s most populous state of Uttar Pradesh, the newborn, named ‘Nargis’ - a beautiful flower - was given a birth certificate by the local administration.
We are using the occasion to draw world attention to India’s growing gender gap and Plan's campaign against female foeticide. The world’s emerging economic superpower, estimated to overtake China to become the most populous nation by 2030, has 7 million girls ‘missing’ from its population. Plan has made registration of birth an integral part of its girls’ rights campaigns.
Find out more about Baby 7 Billion in India
