I Exist: Hope and Dignity for ‘Invisible’ Children

Viva Juntos por la Niñez Association, Guatemala, Viva’s partner network, is looking forward to expanding its “I EXIST, I AM A CITIZEN” project this year. In Guatemala, birth registration is complex, meaning that many children do not receive a birth certificate as infants. In 2025, the network set a goal of registering the births of 300 children, and encouragingly, 355 were registered, exceeding the goal by 18% - and, in total, the network has supported the registration of at least 14,000 children over the years. The fact that it is problematic to successfully register births in Guatemala means that “The main victims are children, whose access to education and basic health is limited due to their ‘invisible’ status, and consequently, years later, their job search or the exercise of suffrage, among other rights, will be limited.” - Jeannette Meza, network director.

What problems do unregistered children face?

Unregistered children and adolescents are in effect excluded from society and denied their rights to identity, education, health, safety, and social services. In Guatemala, more than 1,000,000 children and adolescents are not registered with RENAP (National Registry of Persons), representing up to 10% of all citizens. This means, in effect, that they do not exist - and have no rights that other citizens in Guatemala legally enjoy. This is despite Guatemala's internal legal order, "The Comprehensive Protection of Children and Adolescents Law," which is meant to protect the right of all citizens to have a legal identity. Many families struggle to register their children because of limited hospital access, centres of registration being far and few in number, and a general poverty level which impacts many families, as many live on just 15.00 Guatemalan Quetzal per day, which is only $2.

I exist: I am a citizen

The I EXIST, I AM A CITIZEN project counters this problem, and gives girls, boys, young people, adolescents and adults the fundamental right to an identity from the time of their birth. This simple act of ensuring a child has a birth certificate means they can enjoy a dignified life and access education and health services. This is critical because, as Jeannette, the network leader, notes, “children without identity documents and access to education are highly vulnerable to becoming street children, child labourers, or migrants.”

 The “I EXIST, I AM A CITIZEN” programme covers three arms:

• Advocacy and support for State public entities whose mandate is linked to the birth registry.

• Strengthening the response capacity of civil society organisations to facilitate birth registration actions.

• Promotional work, prevention and awareness-raising efforts regarding the importance of timely birth registration for families without legal identity.

A life impacted: Luis’ name is now known

The mother of Luis (not his real name), who lives in Caabon, Alta Verapaz, had never been able to register her son’s birth; she did not have the financial resources to pay the registration fines and couldn't go to the RENAP office because it was too far from her house, and transportation was very expensive. She is a single mother and works in the fields, cutting corn and coffee; what she earns in a day's work is very little, barely enough to feed herself and Luis.

Upon learning of the registration exercise that Viva Juntos por la Niñez Association, Guatemala, was holding in conjunction with RENAP, she made sure she was on the list of parents to be included on the bus hired to take them to the registration site. Thus, on the day of the event, she and other parents left at 4am to board the bus and travel the 150-kilometre journey. It took them all day because of the large number of people registered that day.

She notes, “I am very happy that my son is now enrolled. I was able to gather all of his paperwork, and he has his name on it.” She will now be able to enrol him in the school in her community and take him to the health centre for vaccinations and medical attention.

A bathtub for a baby!

For the past 14 years, a local church, Casa de Dios Church, has partnered with Viva Juntos por la Niñez Association, Guatemala, to incentivise parents to register their children. Its objective is to reward the first parents who register their children born on the first day of the year. As such, every year, on 2 January, church volunteers visit 40 state hospitals nationwide, and at each hospital, the first 10 registered children receive bathtubs and hygiene supplies - no small exercise, as this video (in Spanish) shows!

I exist.

Helping Guatemalan children obtain the paperwork they need from the start of life benefits them in multiple ways, ensuring they can access services, including education and healthcare. This project also gives them a platform for future self-sustainability, removing the indignity of not being legally known and recognised as a citizen who can contribute to their country. As Viva, we believe that each child deserves ‘life in all its fullness’ – with the right to an identity being a fundamental part of their wellbeing. Viva has helped source funding for this project in the past, and if you are interested in helping more children ‘exist’, please do contact us.