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Assessment of birth registration awareness and practice in Du District, Jos South Local Government Area, Plateau State, Nigeria

BACKGROUND: Birth registration is a fundamental human right, often overlooked due to a lack of awareness of its importance. Birth registration data, when correctly collected, can play important roles in a country's economic and social development in the areas of planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies to inform resource allocation. The study assessed the awareness and status of birth registration in two communities of Du district in Jos South local government area of Plateau State, Nigeria. METHODOLOGY: It was a cross-sectional study that used a mixed method to obtain data. A total of 213 caregivers selected by multistage sampling technique were assessed using interviewer-administered questionnaires and focus group discussions (FGD) amongst four groups of community members. Data were analysed with Epi Info 7 at a P ≤ 0.05. RESULTS: The mean age of the respondents was 32.2 ± 9.5 years. Most (80%) were females and most (88%) were married. Majority (67%) were aware of birth registration. The index child for 93% of the caregivers was given birth to in a hospital and 59% of these children had been registered. The age, marital status of the caregiver, and birth order of the index child were found to be significantly associated with the registration status of the child. FGDs revealed that the communities were aware of the places where birth registration could be done, and that the decision to register was influenced mostly by fathers. CONCLUSION: There is a need for more targeted enlightenment campaigns and community engagement to improve compliance for registration of births.