Resources
13 November 2025
Digitalising civil registration to accelerate inclusion
Nearly 850 million people around the world live without a legal identity due to a lack of civil registry documents. These are women, children and vulnerable people deprived of effective access to fundamental rights, essential services and economic participation (World Bank Group, 2021).
Without a legal identity, how can one vote, access health care, obtain a passport, travel, set up a business, open a bank account or even prove they exist?
In many countries, civil registration, still based in whole or in part on paper registers, is fragmented, inefficient and governed by obsolete laws. Digitisation is not an end in itself, but it is a strategic opportunity to strengthen civil registration as a whole. Enabel offers a pragmatic approach based on Belgium’s recognised experience in civil registration digitisation, while taking care to adapt it to partner country contexts and priorities.
Our approach, knowledge sharing, and strategic recommendations are detailed in the following position paper.
