1. Brisbane Accord Group
Session 6. Topics and themes to be covered in a vital statistics system
Civil Registration Process: Place, Time, Cost, Late Registration
UNITED NATIONS STATISTICS DIVISION
Workshop on Operation of Civil Registration, Vital Statistics and
Identity Management Systems for East Asian Countries
Hanoi, Vietnam, November 2017
This presentation is based on the contents of Chapter III, Part One (Paras 58 onwards) for the P&R, Rev3
with

2. Selection of topics and themes
Global recommendations
National experiences
Topics are included or excluded based on:
Expected quality of data
Sensitivity of topic
Global recommendations and National practices are intertwined.
Given that global recommendations are derived from national practices, and National practices must adapt to global demands.
When selecting which topics to include in the VS system at the country level, both national and international demands need to be taken into account.
For example, a greater level of detail might be needed to meet demands of comparability.
Thus it is important to use categories and levels of disaggregation that allow for data to be collapsed and expanded without losing meaning and comparability.
When deciding whether to include/exclude certain topic :
Consider expected quality of data (up to a point, there are certain topics that are core and must not be excluded)
When including a sensitive topic, appropriate confidentiality safeguards must be in place, and wording must be pre-tested in order to yield quality data.

3. What is a topic?
Topics are statistical variables describing information on:
- the vital event
- the persons involved in the vital event
Vital events:
live births, deaths, foetal deaths, marriages and divorces
Another distinction:
- Direct topics
- Derived topics
Two levels of priority:
- Core topics
- Additional topics
Topics are essentially statistical variables.
Info on event itself: when it occurred, where it occurred, type of event…
Info on Persons involved: child, foetus, parents, decedent, bride and groom, spouses.
Two levels of priority, in recognition to the fact that not all countries will be able to collect information on all topics, or with the same quality.
Core topics represent an immediate goal
A distinction is made between direct and derived topics.
Direct topics: data collected in the forms or statistical reports filled out at the time of registration
Derived topics: computed or inferred, not obtained from direct questions. Derived topics are widely used for producing important tabulations. For example, age is a derived topic if date of birth is asked; or urban/rural if inferred from place of residence.

4. Tabulations are based on topics
Absolute numbers
Relative indicators
Malaysia, 2015: Live births by sex and urban/rural residence
Both Sexes
Male
Female
Total
521,136
269,255
251,881
Urban
350,677
181,128
169,549
Rural
170,459
88,127
82332
Malaysia, 2015: total fertility rate by urban/rural residence
Both Sexes
Total
2.002
Urban --
Rural
Once the topics are determined and the data are collected, it is organised in tabulations.
Tabulations can contain:
- Absolute numbers on the event: classified by certain characteristics of the event (month, single or multiple birth, etc) or of the persons involved (sex, age, marital status)
- Relative indicators that involve the population at risk (in this case of the TFR, the female population of childbearing age)
Source is UNSD demographic database, data submitted by NSOs. TFR only available at the national level, not U/R.
Source: UNSD Database, 25 October 2017

5. Topics and themes for vital statistics from the civil registration system
Topics can be collected from the civil registration system, which is by far the preferred source, or from other sources such as censuses and surveys. If relying on censuses and surveys, not possible to collect all topics prescribed by international standards.
There is no substitute for a well-designed and well-maintained civil registration system as a source of data for the production of vital statistics.
So we will focus on the topics to be collected from civil registration.
However, in countries where CR is lacking or deficient, censuses and surveys can be used to collect information on fertility, mortality and nuptiality and to estimate rates. The topics that can be collected through these alternative sources can be consulted in the P&R, paragraphs 67 onwards.

6. Topics and themes for vital statistics from the CR system
Live births
On the event
- Date of occurrence
- Date of registration
- Place of occurrence
Locality of occurrence
Urban/rural
- Place of registration
- Type of birth (single, twin, triplet...)
- Attendant at birth
On the newborn
- Sex
- Weight at birth
* In the interest of time, I will only mention core topics. Additional topics can be consulted in paragraph 66 of the P&R.
* Direct topics are shown in bold, whereas derived topics are shown with a smaller font and a square.

7. Topics and themes for vital statistics from the CR system
Live births
On the mother
- Date of birth
Age
- Marital status
Child born in wedlock
- Educational attainment
- Place of usual residence
Locality of residence
Urban/rural residence
- Duration of residence at usual place
- Place/country of birth
Migrant status
- Children born alive to mother during her entire lifetime
Birth order or parity
- Foetal deaths to mother during her entire lifetime
- Date of last previous live birth
Interval since previous live birth
- Date of marriage
Duration of marriage

8. Topics and themes for vital statistics from the CR system
Live births
On the father
- Date of birth
Age
- Marital status
- Educational attainment
- Place of usual residence
Locality of residence
Urban/rural residence

9. Topics and themes for vital statistics from the CR system
Deaths
On the event
- Date of occurrence
- Date of registration
- Place of occurrence
Locality of occurrence
Urban/rural
- Place of registration
- Cause of death
- Certifier
Type of certification
On the decedent
- Date of birth
Age
- Sex
- Marital status
- Place of usual residence
- Place of usual residence of the mother (for deaths under 1 year of age)
Locality of residence
Urban/rural residence

10. Topics and themes for vital statistics from the CR system
Foetal deaths
On the event
- Date of occurrence (of foetal delivery)
- Date of registration
- Place of occurrence
Locality of occurrence
Urban/rural
- Place of registration
On the foetus
- Sex
Definition of foetal death: para 2 (page 4), read footnotes 2 and 3 very carefully.

11. Topics and themes for vital statistics from the CR system
Foetal deaths
On the mother
- Date of birth
Age
- Children born alive to mother during her entire lifetime
Birth order or parity
- Foetal deaths to mother during her entire lifetime
- Date of last previous live birth
Interval since previous live birth
- Date of marriage
Duration of marriage
- Place of usual residence
Locality of residence
Urban/rural residence

12. Topics and themes for vital statistics from the CR system
Foetal deaths
On the father
- Date of birth
Age
- Place of usual residence
Locality of residence
Urban/rural residence

13. Topics and themes for vital statistics from the CR system
Marriages
On the event
- Date of occurrence
- Date of registration
- Place of occurrence
Locality of occurrence
Urban/rural
- Place of registration
On the bride and groom (separately)
- Date of birth
Age
- Place of usual residence
Locality of residence
Urban/rural residence

14. Topics and themes for vital statistics from the CR system
Divorces
On the event
- Date of occurrence
- Date of registration
- Place of occurrence
Locality of occurrence
Urban/rural
- Place of registration
On the divorcees (husband and wife separately)
- Date of birth
Age
- Date of marriage
Duration of marriage
- Place of usual residence
Locality of residence
Urban/rural residence
With this we finish detailing the list of core topics.
It is a long list, we are aware, however let me reiterate that each topic was discussed very carefully by experts from all the regions of the world, based on their experience.
We encourage you to compare with the topics collected in your country and identify gaps.

15. Thank You Спасибо 谢谢
Gracias Merci
ﺷﻜﺮﺍﹰ

16. Topics and themes for vital statistics from censuses and surveys
The topics that can be collected through these alternative sources can be consulted in the P&R, paragraphs 67 onwards.

17. There is no substitute for a well-designed and well-maintained civil registration system as a source of data for the production of vital statistics
… because neither censuses nor surveys can provide the level of detail and geographical disaggregation that CR provides
and estimates coming from these sources vary in quality and need to be adjusted for under-reporting anyhow
However, in countries where CR is lacking or deficient, censuses and surveys can be used to collect information on fertility, mortality and nuptiality and to estimate rates.
Also, even if the CR is well established, censuses and surveys are useful to evaluate the level of completeness of CRVS, and to provide complimentary demographic and health information.
In particular, censuses provide denominators for vital rates and ratios.

18. Topics and themes for vital statistics from censuses and surveys
For all members of the household
- Relationship to the head
- If mother lives in the same household, identify line number of the questionnaire
- Date of birth
- Survival of parents
- Marital status
For households
- Number of deaths during the previous 12 months
- For each deceased:
Name
Sex
Date of birth
Date of death
Cause of deaths, whether during pregnancy, childbirth or puerperium

19. Topics and themes for vital statistics from censuses and surveys
For women aged 15+
- Total number of children ever born alive, by sex
- Total number of children still living, by sex
- Date of birth and sex of last child born alive
- Survival of last child born alive
- Date of death of last child born alive
- Age at first marriage
- Age at first birth
- Duration of marriage
For women aged 15+ (or the minimum age adopted in each country)