Keeping the momentum on state-of-the-art civil registration and vital statistics systems - On Health

Keeping the momentum on state-of-the-art civil registration and vital statistics systems - On Health

Samuel Mills

Samuel Mills, MD, DrPH, is a Senior Health Specialist, Health Nutrition & Population Global Practice at the World Bank Group (WBG). He was previously the Chair of the interagency Global CRVS Group, and he coordinated the efforts of several international experts in developing a comprehensive 21st-century CRVS e-Learning course as part of the WBG Open Learning Campus.

Keeping the momentum on state-of-the-art civil registration and vital statistics systems

National civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) systems provide necessary population data to monitor national and sub-national development programs as well as the Sustainable Development Goals. A new supplement on CRVS systems in low- and middle-income countries published in Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition presents best practices and recommendations on how to improve CRVS systems globally. Here, the lead organizer of the supplement from the World Bank Group, Samuel Mills, shares an overview of this new research project.

Samuel Mills 18 Oct 2019

©World Bank

Civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) systems provide the foundation for good governance. In some countries, a large number of births and deaths are not registered with appropriate authorities and thus are excluded from the government system. This results in individuals lacking proof of legal identity and vital events such as live birth, death, fetal death, marriage, divorce, etc., and the country not having accurate population data such as the number of births, deaths, and causes of death.