Zimbabwe: ‘Chiefs now marriage officers’
Published: 5/Mar/2024
Source: Newsday (Harare)
By GRACIOUS DANIEL
TRADITIONAL leaders in Zimbabwe will now have the authority to register marriages and issue birth and death certificates in a landmark development that seeks to eliminate statelessness.
This was revealed by vice-president of the National Council of Chiefs Fortune Charumbira on Thursday during a conference of traditional leaders held in Harare.
With over 70% of Zimbabweans living in rural areas where traditional leaders hold sway, the move is expected to have a major impact on the lives of most of the population, he said.
An inquiry on access to documentation in Zimbabwe by the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission has since revealed that over 2,3 million children in the country did not have birth certificates as of September 2020.
The Zimbabwe Constitution declares that everyone has a right to access citizenship documents. Many children, however, do not have birth certificates, and obtaining national identification cards is a challenge.
“Traditional leaders will now handle marriage registrations and issuance of death or birth certificates, serving as an official record maintained by the Registrar’s Office,” Charumbira said in his closing remarks at the two-day chiefs’ conference.
Read further: https://www.newsday.co.zw/local-news/article/200023955/chiefs-now-marriage-officers