Routes to improved mortality monitoring: Evidence from the Kerala MARANAM Study

Aashish Gupta and Sneha Mani

No jachq, SocArXiv from Center for Open Science

Abstract: Despite having universal mortality registration, vital registration systems in many regions of contemporary developing countries do not receive adequate attention. Using individual-level vital-registration data on more than 2.8 million deaths between 2006 and 2017 from the Kerala MARANAM (Mortality and Registration Assessment and Monitoring) Study, we examine completeness of vital statistics and reliability of mortality rates estimated using them. Our findings show that age-specific mortality rates obtained from vital statistics system in Kerala, a comparatively low-mortality context in a low- and middle-income setting, are more reliable than the ones estimated by India's Sample Registration System. This is particularly true for ages where mortality is low, and for women. Using these data we provide the first set of annual sex-specific life-tables for any state in India. We find that life expectancy at birth was 77.9 years for women in 2017, and 71.4 years for men. Although Kerala is unique in many ways, our findings strengthen the case for more attention to mortality records within developing countries, and for their better dissemination by government agencies.

Date: 2020-12-30
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:osf:socarx:jachq

DOI: 10.31219/osf.io/jachq

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