A senior director in the Ministry of Education attributed the low rates for Matabeleland provinces to high numbers of people migrating to South Africa and the consequent unavailability of birth certificates.83 The fact that male children were more likely to cross the border into South Africa in search of employment was cited as a possible additional factor. The Ministry of Education requires children to produce an identity document such as a birth certificate or ID in order to be allowed to sit for (a) Grade 7, the final year of public examinations in primary school; and (b) Ordinary Level examinations, at the fourth year of secondary education, which qualifies students to attend vocational training or teachers’ college to enter the job market. 84 Schools require pupils to provide both a birth certificate and an ID before they are permitted to sit secondary school public examinations. A principal director in the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education told Amnesty International that the requirement for identity documents is meant to safeguard the integrity of the Zimbabwe School Examinations Council and prevent incidences of fraud and impersonation. 85 By imposing these requirements without taking into account the problems they cause for stateless children, the authorities are denying education for thousands. The following are stories from some of the people we spoke to about how the difficulties in obtaining identity documents are affecting young people’s right to education. BETTY, PENHALONGA DISTRICT Betty lives at Redwing Mine in the Penhalonga district of Manicaland province. Her late parents migrated from Malawi to Zimbabwe to seek employment before independence and she has never been granted identity documents in Zimbabwe. She is married with four children who do not have birth certificates because of her lack of ID. Betty tried to obtain a birth certificate in 2017 at Mutasa Registry in eastern Manicaland province. She was told to bring her parents’ death certificates, a letter from the headman and a letter from her primary school. She was also told that the headman should be present. Although Betty obtained a letter from the headman, officials refused to issue a birth certificate because he was unable to attend in person, as a witness, and she did not have her parents’ death certificates. A headman in Matabeleland South told Amnesty International that registry offices should accept a letter from a traditional leader as sufficient evidence to confirm the applicant’s origin. Nevertheless, registry officials repeatedly asked Betty for further documents and primary evidence and told her to travel to Malawi to obtain her parents’ death certificates. This attitude was confirmed by a provincial registrar who said that people of foreign origin must trace where they came from and bring the required evidence.86 However, this does not take into account people in Betty’s situation. She does not know anyone in Malawi, as she was born in Zimbabwe and never travelled to her parents’ country of origin when they were alive. Betty’s 17-year-old son Tinashe* was forced to drop out of school since he had no birth certificate. He currently works as an informal artisanal miner because his lack of ID prevents him from obtaining formal employment at Redwing Mine. Out of desperation, Tinashe later obtained a birth certificate using another woman who acted as his mother. Amnesty International came across several other cases of children obtaining birth certificates using surrogate mothers as a result of the restrictive birth registration laws against migrants and their descendants. Forcing young people to take these measures not only has serious implications for them if they are discovered but also for wider society in terms of identity authentication. 83 Interview with Amnesty International on 26 July 2019. Section 34 of the Zimbabwe School Examinations Council Act provides that the ZIMSEC Board may cancel an examination or annul the results of an examination if there is evidence of impersonation of someone who was supposed to sit for public exam. 85 See section 34 of the ZIMSEC Act. 86 Interview with registry official on 23 August 2019. The evidence includes parents’ IDs, letter from the village head and at least one relative with the same surname as the applicant. 84 WE ARE LIKE “STRAY ANIMALS” THOUSANDS LIVING ON THE MARGINS DUE TO STATELESSNESS IN ZIMBABWE Amnesty International 30