• The authorities piloted digital civil registration in 19 districts on Africa CRVS Day.
• Only 3 % of Somali children under five currently have a registered birth.
• Officials planned to phase the national rollout, pending audits and secure integration.

Somalia has taken a major step forward in its digital transformation journey with the pilot launch of a Unified Digital Civil Registration Service in 19 districts across the country. The announcement was made by the Ministry of Interior, Federal Affairs and Reconciliation during the commemoration of the 8th Africa Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) Day on August 10. The initiative aligns with the annual AU-backed commemoration established in 2018 to highlight the importance of robust CRVS systems and rally support for ensuring every citizen is officially recorded.

The new platform enables local administrations in Federal Member States—including Jubbaland, Southwest, Hirshabelle, Galmudug, and Northeastern State—to begin digitally registering births, marriages, divorces, and deaths. All records are stored in a centralized national database, and officials say the system is designed to be secure and tamper-resistant; however, no independent security audit has yet been published.

Officials say the system should, once fully rolled out, reduce administrative bottlenecks and cut costs associated with paper-based records. The Ministry is currently testing interfaces that would integrate the platform with health, education, national ID, and immigration services, laying the groundwork for a more interconnected e-government ecosystem.

According to UNICEF, as part of the digital CRVS pilot, 19 districts were equipped with modern registration tools, including tablets for health facilities without computers. The Federal Ministry of Education has also committed to piloting the mainstreaming of CRVS into the school enrolment process—starting with primary-age children who have missed out on registration—to ensure that digital identity begins at the earliest stages of life.

Reliable civil registration is the backbone of effective governance and inclusive digital transformation. According to the 2020 Somalia Demographic and Health Survey, only 3 % of children under five have had their births officially registered, and a mere 0.3 % hold a birth certificate, one of the lowest rates globally. This leaves millions without legal identity, limiting access to education, healthcare, voting rights, and social-protection programmes.

By expanding access to official documentation, the digital registry is expected—once fully deployed—to boost citizen participation in public life, facilitate access to social services, and strengthen national planning through reliable population data. A government roadmap sets out plans to scale the service to every district, including remote and underserved areas, subject to funding and infrastructure.

The move aligns with the African Union’s push for legal identity as the cornerstone of digital governance, and comes as Somalia seeks to modernize public administration, enhance transparency, and close the gap in civil-registration coverage.

Hikmatu Bilali

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