Registered or unregistered: factors associated with registration and certification of births in Ghana

Fidelia A. A. Dake, University of Ghana
Kamil Fuseini, North-West University, South Africa

The birth of a child is a vital event that needs to be registered yet an estimated 40 million births go unregistered annually. All births need to be registered and issued with a birth certificate. This paper examines the factors that influence the registration and certification of births in Ghana. This paper uses data from the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey conducted in 2011. The analytic sample consist of 4,113 children and their mothers. Differentials in birth registration and certification were examined using bivariate and multivariate techniques. Birth registration and certification was lowest among children born to young mothers, children whose mother have no formal education, mothers who reside in rural areas and mothers in the poorest wealth quintile. Home births are less likely to be registered or issued a birth certificate. Efforts aimed at improving birth registration in Ghana need to target groups of children and mothers with low registration.