Charity launches BBC Radio 4 Appeal to help Zimbabweans

A Leeds-based charity has launched a BBC Radio 4 Appeal to help tackle a crisis affecting over 50 per cent of Zimbabwean children - the lack of a birth certificate.

- by Jennifer Cartwright

The Zimbabwe Educational Trust, a charity which was founded in 1987 by Vuli Mkandla, an educator from Zimbabwe who moved to Leeds, works with grassroots organisations in Zimbabwe to deliver education-focused projects for marginalised young people.

The appeal, named Exist to Exist - Every Child’s Right to Be Seen, aims to shine a light on how families are denied basic rights because of missing paperwork.

According to UNICEF, only 49 per cent of births in Zimbabwe are registered.

Without a birth certificate, people in Zimbabwe can be denied access to basic rights including healthcare and education.