Having a baby in Kenya: birth certificate and cover
Register the birth, then add your child to your health cover.
Your checklist. Tick things off as you go; it's saved on this phone only.
- 1. What SHA covers for pregnancy and delivery. Maternity cover under SHA (Linda Mama) Register with SHA (dial *147# or use afyayangu.go.ke), then go to a SHA-contracted facility for antenatal visits and delivery. Delivery is free for registered mothers, including a caesarean section when it's needed.
- 2. Register the birth and get the certificate. Get a birth certificate (including late registration) Apply for your child's birth certificate on eCitizen, at a sub-county civil registration office or at a Huduma Centre, using the Acknowledgement of Birth Notification (ABN) from where the child was born. The certificate costs KSh 200.
- 3. If your baby was born outside Kenya. Register the birth of a Kenyan child born abroad Fill in Form BDA 1 and hand it in with the foreign birth certificate and passports at a Kenyan embassy or in Kenya. Registration costs KSh 1,000 in Kenya (USD 50 at an embassy), plus KSh 200 for the Kenyan birth certificate.
- 4. Add your baby as a dependant. Add your spouse and children as dependants on SHA Log in to afyayangu.go.ke and click Add Dependents to add your spouse and children. You'll need their ID or birth certificate and a passport photo. No phone or internet? Get help at a Huduma Centre or SHA office.