21 December 2018

Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Siyabonga Cwele, is scheduled to visit Prince Mshiyeni Memorial Hospital in Umlazi, eThekwini, on 25 December 2018, to join in the celebratory welcoming of babies to be born on Christmas Day, fondly called “Xmas Babies”, and to hand-over, to the blessed mothers, birth certificates and gift packs comprising baby nappies and blankets.

The Department of Home Affairs prioritises visits to the 391 connected health facilities to promote early birth registration within 30 days, as required by the Births and Deaths Registration Act of 1992. It believes that success for improved birth registration depends on availability of sustainable IT systems and infrastructure within health facilities.

The Minister is expected to use this occasion to encourage all mothers to register their children immediately after birth, especially where the birth occurrence is at a connected health facility that is empowered to register births and issue birth certificates on the spot. In 2017/18, a total of 772 035 births were registered within 30 calendar days, thus exceeding the national target of 750 000 births to be registered within 30 days of birth.

By registering children, and documenting them, government ensures that their identity and status as citizens are recognised such that for the rest of their lives they are visible with the capacity to exercise their civic rights, access government services and participate fully in the economy. This also enables government to draw accurate population information that is essential for research and planning.

MEDIA IS INVITED AS FOLLOWS:
DATE: Tuesday, 25 December 2018
VENUE: Prince Mshiyeni Memorial Hospital, Umlazi
TIME: 09h00

ENQUIRIES / RSVP:
Siya Qoza – 082 898 1657
David Hlabane – 071 342 4284

ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF HOME AFFAIRS ON 21 DECEMBER 2018