The Minister for Justice, Siromi Turaga, is confident that his upcoming trip to Bangkok, Thailand, next year will enhance their understanding and help find solutions to the challenges surrounding birth and death registration in Fiji. The ministry has set a goal to achieve 100 percent birth registration by the year 2026.
According to Mr. Turaga, Fiji is leading other Pacific Island nations in this regard, currently achieving an 80 percent birth registration rate. However, he highlighted that the remaining 20 percent of the population remains unregistered, a gap the minister aims to address.
“Our teams recently visited certain areas in Vanua Levu and noted the persistent issue of non-registration of newborns and children. Although there has been a slight increase in awareness, it has not yet reached all targeted populations,” he stated.
Mr. Turaga emphasized the need for additional budgetary support in the upcoming financial year to sustain the birth registration efforts. Samuela Ligairi, the special administrator of Labasa Town Council, mentioned the role of advisory councilors and village chiefs in helping the ministry identify individuals in their communities and villages who are not registered at birth.