The Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages has reported that it received a record 7,491 Aboriginal births registrations in 2018, a 54 per cent increase on the year before.
Attorney General, Mark Speakman announced the record with the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Don Harwin and Minister for Customer Service, Victor Dominello saying the increase had been sparked by the Our Kids Count campaign that targeted Indigenous communities and the introduction of online birth registrations across NSW in April last year.
“It’s wonderful to see so many Aboriginal families taking advantage of the convenience of online registrations,” My Speakman said.
“Particularly in remote areas where they may not have easy access to shopfront services.”
Mr Harwin said the Our Kids Count campaign highlighted that registering a birth was free and vital to the future of Aboriginal children.
“Without registration, it’s not possible to get a birth certificate and it can be difficult to access education, health and sporting services,” Mr Harwin said.
“As part of Our Kids Count, Indigenous staff from the Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages have visited Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.”
Mr Speakman said online birth registrations had also been a major hit among the broader NSW community, with 95 per cent of the state’s applications now completed electronically.
He said more than 107,000 births had been processed since the system was launched – a 13.3 per cent increase on the previous year.
He said that child’s birth should be registered within 60 days.
