Vital Statistics

The United Nations recommends that countries should register and collect information on the following vital events for civil registration and vital statistics purposes birth; death; foetal death; marriage; divorce; annulment; judicial separation; adoption; legitimation (acknowledgement); and recognition (judicial declarations of paternity).

Strataegies

The United Nations recommends that countries should register and collect information on the following vital events for civil registration and vital statistics purposes birth; death; foetal death; marriage; divorce; annulment; judicial separation; adoption; legitimation (acknowledgement); and recognition (judicial declarations of paternity).

2025 Annual Expert Group Meeting for Registrars General (EGMRG)

2025 Annual Expert Group Meeting for Registrars General (EGMRG).

Held from 25-27 June 2025 in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, the Annual Expert Group Meeting for Registrars General brought together civil registration experts from more than 40 African countries, regional economic communities, and international partners. Organized by ECA and the African Union Commission, the meeting reviewed progress under the APAI-CRVS Strategic Plan 2023-2028 and reaffirmed CRVS as a core pathway toward universal legal identity and stronger vital statistics.

CART 1

The CRVS applied research training (CART) initiative focuses on enhancing CRVS systems through supporting applied research on strategies, interventions, and tools. This involves designing projects to address practical questions, employing robust methodologies, and identifying key personnel for effective implementation and publication. This project aims to strengthen the capacity of CRVS practitioners in Africa, Asia, and the Pacific to conduct high quality relevant research. 

Advocacy and communications FR

Civil registration involves interactions between individuals, households and different institutions, especially government organs at various levels, and benefits all of the above. These interactions and inter-linkages can be conceptualized into a holistic and integrated operational framework by clearly identifying products and services, agencies that are responsible for delivering them, and the beneficiaries that use them.

Advocacy and communications

Civil registration involves interactions between individuals, households and different institutions, especially government organs at various levels, and benefits all of the above. These interactions and inter-linkages can be conceptualized into a holistic and integrated operational framework by clearly identifying products and services, agencies that are responsible for delivering them, and the beneficiaries that use them.

CRVS Systems Improvement Framework

CRVS Systems Improvement Framework

Over the past decade, efforts to strengthen Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) systems have centered on deploying a range of improvement tools aimed at achieving universal civil registration and generating reliable vital statistics for reporting and planning. These experiences—along with lessons learned by countries and partners—culminated in 2021 with the creation of the CRVS Systems Improvement Framework (“the Framework”).

Africa’s Progress Towards SDG target 16.9: Legal identity for all including birth registration by 2030

At the adoption of the Sustainable Development agenda, in 2015, world leaders placed the attainment of a legal identity as an international development agenda, with target 16.9 specifically focusing on providing legal identity for all, including birth registration, by 2030. Complementing this is target 17.9, which calls for support in strengthening the statistical capacity including for civil registration and vital statistics systems, with an aim to attaining 100% birth registration and 80% death registration.

Building Inclusive National Identity Systems - Interlinking digital identity and legal identity

On Tuesday, 20th February 2024, The African Centre for Statistics (ACS) at UNECA convened its 12th StatsTalk-Africa monthly webinar series that provide a space for dialogue about data, statistics, and innovative tools with data experts and users. This particular webinar was intended to demystify concepts, processes, divergences and developments in digital identity and legal identity systems ... read more

Workshop on developing implementation guidelines to improve civil registration and vital statistics systems

The secretariat of the Africa Programme on Accelerated Improvement of Civil Registration and Vital Statistics Systems, based in the Economic Commission for Africa, in collaboration with Vital Strategies, is organizing a regional workshop on the development of technical implementation guidelines for civil registration and vital statistics. The workshop will be held in Nairobi from 29 January to 02 February 2024.

Good data helps African countries to make better development policy decisions – ECA’s Chinganya

Addis Ababa, 21 October 2022 (ECA) – The eighth meeting of the Statistical Commission for Africa will be held in Ethiopia from 24-28 October 2022 under the theme “Modernizing data ecosystems in Africa to support regional Integration”. The meeting will incorporate the eighth meeting of the Regional Committee of United Nations Global Geospatial Information Management for Africa as well as the expert segment of the sixth session of the Conference of African Ministers Responsible for Civil Registration.

Eighth Statistical Commission for Africa to address Urgent Need for High-quality Data Supply

Addis Ababa, 21 October 2022, (ECA) – The Economic Commission for Africa's (ECA) Macroeconomics and Governance Division (MGD) will host a hybrid side event on 23 October 2022, from 14-16 hrs (Addis Abeba time) at the United Nations Conference Center in Addis Ababa Ethiopia. The event will focus on ensuring high-quality data supply, with experts sharing experiences on related urgent needs emerging in this area.

COVID-19

Welcome to the APAI-CRVS  COVID-19 Resources, bringing together all COVID-19 research, reviews, commentary, news, and analysis from across the APAI-CRVS journals as it is published. The resource aims to assist health workers, policymakers, and researchers in bringing the COVID-19 pandemic to a close. All of our COVID-19 content is free to access.

Référentiel pays

The Civil Registration and Vital Statistics Digitization Guidebook was created by Plan International and other core group members of the Africa Program for Accelerated Improvement of Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (APAI-CRVS). It is an online resource that provides step-by-step guidance for countries to plan, analyze, design and implement digitized systems and automated processes for CRVS. It responds to the need expressed by countries in Africa to develop effective, scale able and sustainable CRVS systems and to maximize the impact of ICT investments.

Matériel de recherche

For individuals, documents from vital events such as birth, death, and marriage certificates are crucial to providing legal identity and unlocking rights to education, access to healthcare, inheritances, and voting. For governments, information collected when these events are registered provides critical insights into their populations’ health and needs. This information also enables countries to measure their progress toward achieving many of the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals.

Meeting Documents

For individuals, documents from vital events such as birth, death, and marriage certificates are crucial to providing legal identity and unlocking rights to education, access to healthcare, inheritances, and voting. For governments, information collected when these events are registered provides critical insights into their populations’ health and needs. This information also enables countries to measure their progress toward achieving many of the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals.

Country repository

The Civil Registration and Vital Statistics Digitization Guidebook was created by Plan International and other core group members of the Africa Program for Accelerated Improvement of Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (APAI-CRVS). It is an online resource that provides step-by-step guidance for countries to plan, analyze, design and implement digitized systems and automated processes for CRVS. It responds to the need expressed by countries in Africa to develop effective, scale able and sustainable CRVS systems and to maximize the impact of ICT investments.

Country Profile

The United Nations recommends that countries should register and collect information on the following vital events for civil registration and vital statistics purposes birth; death; foetal death; marriage; divorce; annulment; judicial separation; adoption; legitimation (acknowledgement); and recognition (judicial declarations of paternity).

Tirer parti des partenariats pour appuyer les systèmes innovants de faits d’état civil et de statistiques de l’état civil

Lusaka, Zambie, le 17 octobre 2019 (CEA) - Les participants de haut niveau à la cinquième Conférence des ministres africains responsables des faits d’état civil (COM5) ont eu l’occasion de se pencher sur la mise en place de partenariats dans les domaines des faits d’état civil et des statistiques de l’état civil dans leurs efforts continus à chercher des moyens de combler le fossé de l’identité sur le continent.

 

CRVS in Emergency Situation

Welcome to the APAI-CRVS  COVID-19 Resources, bringing together all COVID-19 research, reviews, commentary, news, and analysis from across the APAI-CRVS journals as it is published. The resource aims to assist health workers, policymakers, and researchers in bringing the COVID-19 pandemic to a close. All of our COVID-19 content is free to access.

La troisième Conférence des Ministres Africains en charge de l’Enregistrement des Faits d’Etat Civil

La troisième Conférence des Ministres Africains en charge de l’Enregistrement des Faits d’Etat Civil s’est tenue du 12 au 13 février 2015 à Yamoussoukro, Côte d'Ivoire sous le thème «Promotion de l’utilisation de l’état civil et des statistiques de l’état civil pour l’appui à la Bonne Gouvernance en Afrique». La Conférences a été précédée par une réunion d’experts de trois jours (du 9 au 11 février 2015) qui a débattu des questions techniques relatives au thème de la conférence et a procédé à la préparation du projet de résolutions et recommandations ainsi que celle d’autres d

Chinganya de la CEA informe la Vice-présidente zambienne Wina sur COM5

Lusaka, Zambie, le 18 octobre 2019 (CEA) - Oliver Chinganya, Directeur du Centre africain pour la statistique, de la Commission économique pour l’Afrique (CEA), s’est entretenu avec le Vice-président de la Zambie, Inonge Mutukwa Wina, afin de l’informer, de la 5ème conférence des ministres africains responsables des faits d’état civil et de statistiques de l’état civil (CRVS) et des enregistrements qu’elle établit alors que l’Afrique cherche à combler l’énorme fossé en matière d’identité existant sur le continent.

Guides et Manuels

Provides guidance to countries for the improvement of their civil registration and vital statistics systems and background and specifications for developing and establishing civil registration and vital statistics systems.

Cinquième Conférence des ministres africains responsables de l'enregistrement des actes d'état civil

La Cinquième Conférence des Ministres Africains en charge de l’Enregistrement des Faits d’Etat Civil (COM5) se tiendra du 14 au 18 octobre 2019, à Lusaka, Zambie.  La Conférence aura deux segments : réunions des Experts (du 14 au 16 octobre 2019) et réunions ministérielles (du 17 au 18 octobre 2019). La Conférence est organisée par la Commission de l’Union Africaine en collaboration avec la Commission Economique des Nations Unies pour l’Afrique (CEA), la Banque Africaine de Développement(BAD) et le Gouvernement de la Zambie.

Third Conference of Ministers Responsible for Civil Registration

The Third Conference of African Ministers responsible for Civil Registration was held on 12th to 13th February 2015 in Yamoussoukro, Côte d'Ivoire on the theme ‘Promoting the  use of Civil Registration and Vital Statistics in Support of Good Governance in Africa.’’ The Conference was preceded by be a three-day Expert Group Meeting (on 9th to 11th February 2015) that deliberated on technical matters arising from the theme of the conference and engaged in the preparation of draft resolutions and recommendations and other technical materials to be presented to the Ministerial forum.

About APAI-CRVS

The Africa Programme on Accelerated Improvement of Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (APAI-CRVS) is a regional programme developed following the political commitment and policy directives of the ministers in charge of civil registration to reform and improve CRVS systems on the continent.

Handbook on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics Systems: Management, Operation and Maintenance (1998)

This Handbook provides guidance to countries for the improvement of their civil registration and vital statistics systems and background and specifications for developing and establishing civil registration and vital statistics systems in countries that do not yet have such systems in place. The Handbook deals with essential components of structure, management, operation and maintenance functions to handle the entire range of vital events-live births, deaths, foetal deaths, marriages and dissolutions of marriage- from the civil registration and the vital statistics perspectives.

Handbook on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics Systems: Preparation of a Legal Framework (1998)

This handbook is one in a series of five prepared by the United Nations Statistics Division, with financial support from the United Nations Population Fund, under the auspices of the International Programme for Accelerating the Improvement of the Civil Registration and Vital Statistics Systems initiated in 1991.

Leveraging partnerships to support Innovative Civil Registration and Vital Statistics

Lusaka, Zambia, October 17, 2019 (ECA) - High-level participants at the ongoing fifth Conference of African Ministers responsible for Civil Registration (COM5) had the opportunity to focus on leveraging partnerships in Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) as they continued to seek ways to bridge the identity gap on the continent.

Hundreds of millions of people worldwide lack proof of legal identity, the majority of them being children who were never registered at birth.

ECA’s Chinganya briefs Zambian VP Wina on COM5

Lusaka, Zambia, October 18, 2019 (ECA) – Oliver Chinganya, the Director of Statistics at the Economic Commission for Africa’s (ECA) African Centre for Statistics, had the opportunity to brief Zambia’s Vice President, Inonge Mutukwa Wina, on the 5th Conference of African Ministers responsible for CRVS and the records it was setting as Africa seeks to bridge the huge identity gap on the continent.

The Fifth Conference of African Ministers Responsible for Civil Registration

The Fifth Conference of African Ministers responsible for Civil Registration (COM5) will take place from 14 to 18 October 2019 in Lusaka, Zambia. The conference will have two segments: Expert Meeting (14-16 October 2019) and Ministerial Meeting (17-18 October 2019). The conference is being organized by the African Union Commission in collaboration with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the African Development Bank (AfDB), and Government of the Zambia.

Experts Group Meeting of the 6th Conference of African Ministers Responsible for Civil Registration

The 6th Conference of African Ministers Responsible for Civil Registration will be held from 24-28th October 2022 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on the theme: A Decade into APAI-CRVS: Reflecting on progress and accelerating efforts towards 2030 through transformed systems. The Conference aims to: 

a.  review progress in the development of CRVS systems over the last ten years, including taking note of new developments since the last Ministerial Conference and the fast-approaching deadline of the 2030 agenda;

African ministers agree to up their game in efforts to close identity gap on the continent

Lusaka, Zambia, October 18, 2019 (ECA) - The Fifth Conference of African Ministers Responsible for Civil Registration ended in Lusaka, Zambia, Friday with member States agreeing to scale-up efforts to address the huge identity gap that exists on the continent.

The ministers urged their governments to avail more financial resources to help them revamp and modernize the continent’s CRVS and ID managements systems to ensure they leave no one behind.