• • • It has discriminatory provisions that make it impracticable to register the birth of child born out of wedlock by a mother in the father’s name, unless he agrees to do so. In the event that the father accepts fatherhood, the mother cannot register his name unless a joint request is made by both parents to do so. The Act fails to provide for registration of non-Zimbabwean children without them or their parents having been granted citizenship. 2.3.3 Citizenship of Zimbabwe Act [4:01] The Act provides for how one can be registered as a citizen of Zimbabwe that is if one cannot be registered by birth as a citizen of Zimbabwe. • In Section 4 the Act provides for the procedure of registration of persons of the full age and sound mind. • It makes it a requirement that only a person of full age and sound mind can apply for the Minister’s authority in the prescribed manner to be registered. • The person shall satisfy the Minister that he is of good character and fit and proper person to be registered a citizen of Zimbabwe and that at the date of the application he is ordinarily resident in Zimbabwe and has been so resident, whether continuously or as an aggregate of a number of periods for at least five years. • Another condition is that he intends, after the granting of his application, to continue to reside in Zimbabwe, subject to the exigencies of his employment and he is willing to renounce any other citizenship he may hold if he becomes a citizen of Zimbabwe. • In Section 5 the Act also provides for application for registration by persons under legal disability. The procedure is that the representative of such a person is supposed to make an application on his behalf. The requirements for the applicant to be successful are that he shall satisfy the Minister that at the date of the application he is ordinarily resident in Zimbabwe. Further that he has association by way of descent, length of residence or otherwise within Zimbabwe which justify his registration as a citizen of Zimbabwe. • The Act also, in Section 12 provides that if a person is deprived of his citizenship of Zimbabwe, the Minister may, subject to Section 12 (2) and (3) provided that the child is not full of age and is a citizen of Zimbabwe by registration, may by order deprive of his citizenship such child whom the person deprived of citizenship is the responsible parent. Comment With regards non-Zimbabwean children, it means that for them to be registered there should be a representative who is duly recognized at law. For nonZimbabwean children they are supposed to have their parents registered first for them to be registered as citizens of Zimbabwe. Only citizens of Zimbabwe can be given birth certificates either by registration or by birth. Mostly these illegal Birth Registration Research Report/2007 23