The department which is mandated by Act of Parliament 301 of 1965 under the laws of Ghana to register the birth of children deaths within thirty days of the occurrence is underperforming as a result of this predicament.

The office which is supposed to provide accurate reliable and timely information of all births and deaths occurring within the area through registrations and certifications has a deplorable structure with no furniture and has no working logistics.

Mr Suguruma Laar, the officer in charge of the department, said this in a presentation at the Garu-Tempane District Assembly performance review of 2014 to 2016.

Mr Laar said a birth certificate was the first official acknowledgement of a child’s existence by the state and it is essential and a right for every child to have one.

He said where births are unregistered, it implied that the child or person had no recognition as a citizen before the law and may not have access to the fundamental human rights and neither would such a child be included in the statistical information about children.

 Mr Laar said the office has been performing poorly over the years as only 2,137 persons out of a target of 4,780, were registered in 2014 while 2,928 out of a target of 4,839 were registered in 2015.

He said some people did not understand why they should register the births of children and deaths of relatives and this is a big challenge to the office.

He called on the government and non-governmental organizations to come to the aid of the department to ensure that it fulfils its constitutional mandate.