Options for Digital Birth Certificates
Birth certificates are the cornerstone for establishing legal identity around the world. Despite their importance, birth certificates are frequently simple, handwritten paper documents or computerized printouts, submitted with little attention to s...
| Main Authors: | , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Working Paper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2019
|
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/807381570770265619/Options-for-Digital-Birth-Certificates http://hdl.handle.net/10986/32542 |
| id |
okr-10986-32542 |
|---|---|
| recordtype |
oai_dc |
| spelling |
okr-10986-325422021-05-25T09:28:36Z Options for Digital Birth Certificates Dharwadker, Sanjay Mills, Samuel BIRTH REGISTRATION BIRTH CERTIFICATE LEGAL IDENTITY DIGITAL CERTIFICATE Birth certificates are the cornerstone for establishing legal identity around the world. Despite their importance, birth certificates are frequently simple, handwritten paper documents or computerized printouts, submitted with little attention to security. The birth certificate issuance process is often decentralized, potentially leading to different formats within the same country. These features make birth certificates relatively easy to forge and difficult to authenticate. In many countries, applying for a passport requires the submission of a birth certificate, a process that can be inefficient, and at the same time may not enable the full authentication of individuals. A similar situation may exist in other circumstances, for instance, when applying for school or university admission, driver’s licenses, marriage and separation certificates, and welfare benefits; enrolling for health care or health insurance; or registering to vote. One way to solve this problem is to make the birth certificate a highly secure document (like a banknote or passport), with personalization and issuance completed under highly secure conditions. Some countries are using a digital birth certificate (DBC). The birth certificate as a digital credential has become relevant in the context of sustainable development goal. Given the increasing digitization of state records and processes, as well as greater connectivity among departments, a DBC, if issued in a secure manner, can enable more timely processing and a greater level of authentication. In addition to having the capacity and administrative processes in place to manage DBCs, countries require a corresponding legal framework to recognize DBCs. This guidance note provides select country examples of manual and electronic birth registration and certification processes and discusses the principal requirements for moving toward DBCs, with suggestions on how to meet the requirements. 2019-10-16T17:21:52Z 2019-10-16T17:21:52Z 2019-08 Working Paper http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/807381570770265619/Options-for-Digital-Birth-Certificates http://hdl.handle.net/10986/32542 English Health, Nutrition, and Population Discussion Paper; CC BY 3.0 IGO http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo World Bank World Bank, Washington, DC Publications & Research Publications & Research :: Working Paper |
| repository_type |
Digital Repository |
| institution_category |
Foreign Institution |
| institution |
Digital Repositories |
| building |
World Bank Open Knowledge Repository |
| collection |
World Bank |
| language |
English |
| topic |
BIRTH REGISTRATION BIRTH CERTIFICATE LEGAL IDENTITY DIGITAL CERTIFICATE |
| spellingShingle |
BIRTH REGISTRATION BIRTH CERTIFICATE LEGAL IDENTITY DIGITAL CERTIFICATE Dharwadker, Sanjay Mills, Samuel Options for Digital Birth Certificates |
| relation |
Health, Nutrition, and Population Discussion Paper; |
| description |
Birth certificates are the cornerstone
for establishing legal identity around the world. Despite
their importance, birth certificates are frequently simple,
handwritten paper documents or computerized printouts,
submitted with little attention to security. The birth
certificate issuance process is often decentralized,
potentially leading to different formats within the same
country. These features make birth certificates relatively
easy to forge and difficult to authenticate. In many
countries, applying for a passport requires the submission
of a birth certificate, a process that can be inefficient,
and at the same time may not enable the full authentication
of individuals. A similar situation may exist in other
circumstances, for instance, when applying for school or
university admission, driver’s licenses, marriage and
separation certificates, and welfare benefits; enrolling for
health care or health insurance; or registering to vote. One
way to solve this problem is to make the birth certificate a
highly secure document (like a banknote or passport), with
personalization and issuance completed under highly secure
conditions. Some countries are using a digital birth
certificate (DBC). The birth certificate as a digital
credential has become relevant in the context of sustainable
development goal. Given the increasing digitization of state
records and processes, as well as greater connectivity among
departments, a DBC, if issued in a secure manner, can enable
more timely processing and a greater level of
authentication. In addition to having the capacity and
administrative processes in place to manage DBCs, countries
require a corresponding legal framework to recognize DBCs.
This guidance note provides select country examples of
manual and electronic birth registration and certification
processes and discusses the principal requirements for
moving toward DBCs, with suggestions on how to meet the requirements. |
| format |
Working Paper |
| author |
Dharwadker, Sanjay Mills, Samuel |
| author_facet |
Dharwadker, Sanjay Mills, Samuel |
| author_sort |
Dharwadker, Sanjay |
| title |
Options for Digital Birth Certificates |
| title_short |
Options for Digital Birth Certificates |
| title_full |
Options for Digital Birth Certificates |
| title_fullStr |
Options for Digital Birth Certificates |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Options for Digital Birth Certificates |
| title_sort |
options for digital birth certificates |
| publisher |
World Bank, Washington, DC |
| publishDate |
2019 |
| url |
http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/807381570770265619/Options-for-Digital-Birth-Certificates http://hdl.handle.net/10986/32542 |
| _version_ |
1764476758249177088 |