RITA sets out to record 300,000 child births across Mara region

From MUGINI JACOB in Musoma

THE Registration, Insolvency and Trusteeship Agency (RITA) is expected to register about 300,000 children under five years in Mara region and provide them with birth certificates on the spot free of charge.

The exercise is expected to start in the region next month, according to the RITA Acting Chief Executive Officer Ms Emmy Hudson. She said that, under normal circumstances, birth certificates for children under five years were now made at health centres and ward executive without asking parents or guardians for any payment.
She said the programme had since shown positive results in the first nine beneficiary regions of Mwanza, Mbeya, Songwe, Iringa, Njombe, Geita, Shinyanga, Mtwara and Lindi. She said that the 2012 official figures show that only 7.3 per cent of children had birth certificates in Mara region.
Therefore, she called upon Mara regional leaders to take the advantage of the programme to improve the figures.
Ms Hudson also used the opportunity to thank UNICEF, the government of Canada and Tigo for providing various contributions that supports implementation of the programme. Mara Regional Commissioner (RC) Mr Adam Malima welcomed the programme promising that his region must enter in the list of best performing regions.