UNICEFつながりで、点と点がつながった瞬間

世界の乳幼児３５％が未登録　国連、教育と福祉の障害に
　【ニューヨーク共同】世界で５歳未満の乳幼児のうち約３５％が政府や自治体に住民として登録されておらず、出生段階で届けが出ていない割合は４割に上るとの報告を国連児童基金（ユニセフ）が１０日発表した。教育や福祉の障害になると警告し、背景には手続きが不便な地域の存在や、手数料が高すぎるなどの事情があると指摘している。
　アフリカ東部ソマリアでは５歳未満児が３％しか登録されず、最貧国全体では３７％。アジアではパキスタンが２７％、インドが４１％の登録にとどまり、中国は有効な統計がない。日本は１００％。2013/12/11 11:27 【共同通信】



We must count every child because every child counts.（すべての子供達を数えないといけないのはすべての子供達がかけがえのないものだから）という部分は、英語らしいリズムのある文ですね。ちょっと狙い過ぎと感じたのかご本人も若干照れている印象も受けましたが、多読や多聴をしないとこういうリズム感のある表現は英語学習者には思いつきませんね。

このUNICEFの発表はEvery Child’s Birth Right: Inequities and trends in birth registrationという報告書の告知も兼ねてのものだったようです。以下プレスリリースです。

Press release
One in three children under-five does not officially exist - UNICEF
UNICEF releases new birth registration report on its own 67th birthday underscoring the importance of counting every child
NEW YORK, 11 December 2013 - On UNICEF’s 67th birthday today, the organization released a new report showing that the births of nearly 230 million children under-five have never been registered; approximately one in three of all children under-five around the world.

“Birth registration is more than just a right. It’s how societies first recognize and acknowledge a child’s identity and existence,” said Geeta Rao Gupta, UNICEF Deputy Executive Director. “Birth registration is also key to guaranteeing that children are not forgotten, denied their rights or hidden from the progress of their nations.”

The new report, Every Child’s Birth Right: Inequities and trends in birth registration, collects statistical analysis spanning 161 countries and presents the latest available country data and estimates on birth registration.

Globally in 2012, only around 60 per cent of all babies born were registered at birth. The rates vary significantly across regions, with the lowest levels of birth registration found in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.

The 10 countries with the lowest birth registration levels are: Somalia (3%), Liberia (4%), Ethiopia (7%), Zambia (14%), Chad (16%), United Republic of Tanzania (16%), Yemen (17%), Guinea-Bissau (24%), Pakistan (27%) and Democratic Republic of the Congo (28%).

共同通信のベタ記事では現状だけでしたが、プレスリリースにはUnicefの取り組みも簡単に紹介してくれています。

Programmes need to address the reasons that families do not register children, including prohibitive fees, unawareness of the relevant laws or processes, cultural barriers, and the fear of further discrimination or marginalization.

UNICEF is using innovative approaches to support governments and communities in strengthening their civil and birth registration systems. In Kosovo for example, the UNICEF Innovations Lab has developed an efficient, effective, and low-cost means of identifying and reporting unregistered births, built on the RapidSMS mobile-phone based platform.

In Uganda, the government – with support from UNICEF and the private sector – is implementing a solution called MobileVRS that uses mobile phone technology to complete birth registration procedures in minutes, a process that normally takes months.

“Societies will never be equitable and inclusive until all children are counted,” added Rao Gupta. “Birth registration has lasting consequences, not only for the child’s wellbeing, but also for the development of their communities and countries.”

BBCの記事は携帯による取り組みのほうもしっかり報じてくれています。

11 December 2013 Last updated at 21:02 GMT
Unicef: 230m young children 'do not officially exist'
The UN children's charity, Unicef, says one in three children under five have not had their births registered.





ブログ記事は「UNICEFつながりで、点と点がつながった瞬間」とちょっとおおげさにタイトルを書かせていただきました。というのもこのUnicefの取り組みは今年春のTIME100人に選ばれた日本人、高知エリカが取り組んでいたものだったからです。『TIMEの100人に入ったもう一人の日本人はエリカ様』の一部を再掲します。



Pioneers
Christopher Fabian and Erica Kochi
Development geeks, both 33
By Jack DorseyApril 18, 2013
 
More than half of the 6 million births each year in Nigeria are not recorded. Without a birth certificate, a child is much less likely to get educated, be vaccinated or receive health services. Two young UNICEF staffers — Erica Kochi and Christopher Fabian — moving fast within their 66-year-old organization, have made registering a birth as easy as sending a text. They’ve employed similar methods to prevent early deaths as well, creating systems to track the distribution of some 63 million insecticide-treated mosquito bed nets to stop the spread of malaria. Erica and Chris are using technology and accessible, intuitive interfaces to quickly transform the face of humanitarian aid and international development. The world will benefit from their continued efforts.

Dorsey is a co-founder of Twitter and Square

（Yutaのざっくり訳）
ナイジェリアでは毎年新たに生まれる600万人の半数以上が記録されていません。出生証明書がないと、子どもは教育を受けたり、ワクチンを接種したり、医療サービスを受けたりするのが難しくなってしまいます。二人の若いユニセフのスタッフ、高知エリカさんとChristopher Fabianさんは創立から66年にもなる組織の中で素早く対応し、携帯メールを送るのぐらい簡単に出生登録できるようにしました。お二人は同じような方法を用い、早期新生児死亡を防止しようとしています。6300万もの殺虫剤付きの蚊帳の配布をトラッキングして、マラリアの拡大を食い止めているのです。エリカとクリスは技術を活用し、利用しやすい直感的なインターフェイスを使って人道援助と国際開発の様相をあっという間に変革しました。世界はこれからも二人の継続的な取り組みの恩恵を受けることでしょう。

ドロシー氏は、ツイッターとスクエアの共同創業者。

TIMEの記事では高知エリカさんに取材して書いています。

U.N.
1 in 3 Children Under the Age of 5 Does Not Officially Exist, Says UNICEF
Worldwide, 230 million children under age 5 were not registered at birth and, as a result, may face difficulties for the rest of their lives
By Noah Rayman Dec. 10, 2013

“Birth registration is incredibly important as the gateway to all other essential services that children and people need in general,” says Erica Kochi, who co-heads UNICEF’s Innovation Unit that is working to develop low-cost technology to identify and report unregistered births. “It’s the first stop to health services, it’s the first stop to education, and as you move forward it’s the first stop to have citizenship and the right to vote.”

Already, UNICEF is working with the Ugandan government to create a mobile system that lets newborns be registered in a matter of minutes and, in the eyes of authorities, brings the children into existence. In Kosovo, where the roughly 5% of unregistered newborns come from some of the country’s most marginalized communities, Kochi’s Innovation Unit developed a way to use mobile phones to allow social workers to report unregistered births.

しっかりと計画を立ててこなしていくことも大事なんですが、たくさんの情報に触れていく中で見取り図ができていく流れも大切にしたいんですよね。資格試験レベルでは計画こなすだけで十分ですが、それ以降のレベルには上がれなくなってしまいますから。