Strengthening civil registration and vital statistics for births, deaths and causes of death RESOURCE KIT Strengthening civil registration and vital statistics for births, deaths and causes of death RESOURCE KIT WHO Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data Strengthening civil registration and vital statistics for births, deaths and causes of death: resource kit. 1. Vital statistics. 2. Birth rate. 3. Mortality. 4. Cause of death. 5. Registries. 6. Data collection. I. World Health Organization. ISBN 978 92 4 150459 1 (NLM classification: WA 900) © World Health Organization 2013 All rights reserved. Publications of the World Health Organization are available on the WHO web site (www.who.int) or can be purchased from WHO Press, World Health Organization, 20 Avenue Appia, 1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland (tel.: +41 22 791 3264; fax: +41 22 791 4857; e-mail: [email protected]). Requests for permission to reproduce or translate WHO publications – whether for sale or for noncommercial distribution – should be addressed to WHO Press through the WHO web site (http://www.who.int/about/licensing/copyright_form/en/index.html). The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the World Health Organization concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Dotted lines on maps represent approximate border lines for which there may not yet be full agreement. The mention of specific companies or of certain manufacturers’ products does not imply that they are endorsed or recommended by the World Health Organization in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. Errors and omissions excepted, the names of proprietary products are distinguished by initial capital letters. All reasonable precautions have been taken by the World Health Organization to verify the information contained in this publication. However, the published material is being distributed without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied. The responsibility for the interpretation and use of the material lies with the reader. In no event shall the World Health Organization be liable for damages arising from its use. Designed by Lisa Schwarb, Lausanne Printed in Luxembourg Acknowledgements This publication is the outcome of expert collaboration in the fields of civil registration, vital statistics, and public health. The authors of the eight modules which comprise this resource kit were: Alan Lopez, Lene Mikkelsen, Rasika Rampatige and Susan Upham (School of Population Health, University of Queensland); Carla AbouZahr (Consultant to Health Information Systems Knowledge Hub, School of Population Health, University of Queensland); Saman Gamage (National Institute of Health Sciences, Kalutara, Sri Lanka); Don de Savigny (Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Basel, Switzerland); and Anneke Schmider (Australian Bureau of Statistics, Brisbane, Australia). The authors wish to thank the following for their contributions, comments and suggestions: Mohamed Ali (WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean, Cairo, Egypt); Mark Amexo (WHO Health Metrics Network, Geneva, Switzerland); Ties Boerma (WHO Department of Health Statistics and Information, Geneva, Switzerland); Karen Carter (School of Population Health, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia); Jyotsna Chikersal (WHO Regional Office for South-East Asia, Delhi, India); Yusuf Hemed (MEASURE Evaluation, Maryland, USA); Mie Inoue (WHO Department of Health Statistics and Information, Geneva, Switzerland); Robert Jakob (WHO Department of Health Statistics and Information, Geneva, Switzerland); Gregory Kbadi (Ifakara Health Institute, Ifakara and Dar es Salaam, United Republic of Tanzania); Derege Kebede (WHO Regional Office for Africa, Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo); Mark Landry (WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific, Manila, Philippines); Andrea Lanyon (Health and Vitals Program, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Brisbane, Australia); Enrique Loyola (WHO Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark); Rafael Lozano (Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA); Doris MaFat (WHO Department of Health Statistics and Information, Geneva, Switzerland); Fran Mawdsley (Health and Vitals Program, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Brisbane, Australia); Henry Mwanyika (Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Basel, Switzerland); Chalapati Rao (School of Population Health, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia); Philip Setel (The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Seattle, Washington, USA); William Soumbey-Alley (WHO Regional Office for Africa, Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo); Claudia Stein (WHO Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark); Bedirhan Ustun (WHO Department of Health Statistics and Information, Geneva, Switzerland); Sue Walker (School of Public Health, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia); Maxine Whittaker (Australian Centre for International and Tropical Health, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia); and Christopher Zielinski (WHO Regional Office for Africa, Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo). The authors also wish to acknowledge the developmental editing services provided by Tony Waddell. Financial support was received from the Health Metrics Network hosted by WHO, and from the Health Information Systems Knowledge Hub, School of Population Health, University of Queensland, supported by the Australian Agency for International Development. III Contents Abbreviations . VII Foreword . IX Executive summary . XI Introduction . 1 MODULE 1: Strategic options and roadmap for improvement 1.1 Introduction . 7 1.2 Background . 7 1.3 Key actions . 11 1.4 Tools and resources . 18 1.5 Summary . 19 MODULE 2: Legal basis for civil registration and vital statistics 2.1 Introduction . 21 2.2 Background . 21 2.3 Key actions . 28 2.4 Tools and resources . 35 2.5 Summary . 38 MODULE 3: Registration practices, coverage and completeness 3.1 Introduction . 41 3.2 Background . 42 3.3 Key actions . 46 3.4 Tools and resources . 60 3.5 Summary . 63 MODULE 4: Death certification and cause of death 4.1 Introduction . ..