Aquino declares years 2015-2024 as civil registration decade

President Benigno Aquino III has declared the 2015 to 2024 as “civil registration and vital statistics decade” in the Philippines.

In Proclamation No. 1106 signed last August 20, Aquino urged all concerned government agencies to strengthen civil registration and vital statistics improvement activities in the country.

The order was in line with the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific Resolution 69/15 titled “Implementing the Outcome of the High-level Meeting on the Improvement of Civil Registration and Vital Statistics in Asia and the Pacific.”

“The Philippines values the importance of civil registry documents to establish identity and civil status, supports universal civil registration, and commits itself to producing accurate, complete and updated vital statistics,” the order read.

“All agencies and instrumentalities of the National Government and local government units, including government-owned or -controlled corporations, in consultation with the private sector, development partners and the citizenry, are hereby enjoined to actively support all activities and programs relevant to the ‘Get every Pinoy and Pinay in the Picture’ initiative,” it added.

Last November 2014, participating countries of the Ministerial Conference on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics in Asia and the Pacific agreed to adopt the “Get everyone in the picture” declaration in the region, declaring the years 2015 to 2024 as the “Asian and Pacific Civil Registration and Vital Statistics Decade, for 2015 to 2024. Yuji Vincent Gonzales/CB