Transcript Location: Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India Map references: Asia Area: Total: 65,610 sq km Land: 62,705 sq km Water: 2,905 sq.

Location: Southern Asia,
island in the Indian Ocean,
south of India
Map references: Asia
Area: Total: 65,610 sq km
Land: 62,705 sq km
Water: 2,905 sq km
Mid.Year Population - 2010
Total
: 20,653,000
Male
: 10,249,000
Female : 10,404,000
Life expectancy - 2006
Male
: 71.7 years
Female : 76.4 years
Literacy (Age15 – 24 Yrs.)-2007
Total
: 97.5%
Male
: 96.9%
Female : 98.1%
The Country…
DEPARTMENT OF
REGISTRAR GENERAL
MINISTRY OF PUBLIC
ADMINISTRATION AND HOME
AFFAIRS
www.rgd.gov.lk
ESA/STAT/AC.219/11
Our Mission
"Our mission is the Registration of Legal
documents pertaining to Movable and Immovable
Properties in Sri Lanka and Registration of
Marriages, Births and Deaths, the primary
domestic events of the populace; the
preservation of such documents and the issue of
certified copies there from at request and thereby
assisting the populace to protect their rights."
REGISTRAR GENERAL'S DEPARTMENT
ORGANIZATIONAL CHART
Civil Registration
Registrar General
Addl-R.G
Dist.Sect./Addl.R.G(25)
Div.Sec/Dist.Registrar (330)
Div.Registrar (914)
Administrative Structure
Civil Registration.
Registration of Births, Marriages and Deaths
(Including such events of Sri Lankans abroad.)
Registration of court orders on adoption of children
and re-registration of births of such children.
Registration of Kandyan Marriages and Divorces.
Registration of Muslim Marriages & Divorces.
Preparation of vital statistics in respect of births,
marriages and deaths
Administrative system of Civil Registration
and Vital Statistics system
Ministry of Public
Administration &
Home Affairs
Ministry of Finance
& Planning
Registrar General’s
Department
Department of
Census & Statistics
Vital Statistics Unit
Legal requirements for registering
death/specifying cause
 Registration of births, deaths and marriages was initiated under the
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Dutch rule 1640-1798
First British Enactment on registration of births, deaths and
marriages in 1815 – Regulation No.07 (Maritime districts only)
Second British Enactment on registration of births, deaths and
marriages in 1822 – Regulation No.09 (Maritime districts only)
General system of registration of birth and death to cover all districts
1847 Ordinance N0.06
Provisions affecting the registration of births and deaths were
replaced by Ordinance No.18 – 1867 and 1868 Registration
remained optional
Registration of births and deaths became compulsory in 1897
The present law – Births and deaths Registration Act 1951
Current Vital Registration
System
 Decentralized
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9 Provinces
25 Districts
330 Divisional Secretaries Divisions
914 Birth & Death Registration Divisions
 Births & Deaths are registered by
 Medical Registrars - in proclaimed towns
 Birth and Death Registrars – other towns
 Birth, Death and Marriage Registrars – villages
Vital Statistics Data Collection System
Coding, editing and
processing data
Scanning Returns
Collecting and checking
accuracy and
completeness
Completing Returns
on Birth and Death
Vital Statistics Unit
33 Scanning Centers
330 Divisional
Secretaries
914 Birth & Death
Registration Divisions
Vital Statistics Data Collection System
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Single form for each marriage/birth
/death
Format to be used for scanning
Should be completed at the time of registration
Information on Cause of death obtains from the
original records
 Verbal autopsy form for obtaining cause of death
occur at homes
 Should be handed over to the DS office before
10 th of each month by registrars
Birth Returns
Death Returns
Vital Statistics Data Collection System
Completed forms are checked for the completeness and
companied with the second copy of the marriage/birth
/ death
 Should be handed over to the scanning unit of the Land
Registry in each following month
Scan the documents : Statistical Returns
 B 33 form which contains the
cause of death certificated by the
Doctor
 B 18 form which contains the
cause of death certified by the
Inquirer into Sudden Death
Send the duplicates to the
Central Record Room
Send images of scanned
documents to the VSU
Transferring information
 From Registrars to Divisional Secretaries
Offices – completed Statistical Returns
 From Divisional Secretaries Offices to
District Scanning Unit – checked Statistical
returns
 From District Scanning Unit to the Vital
Statistics Unit - through e-mail / CDs
Vital Statistics Processing System
District
Office 1
District
Office 2
Head Office
(VSU)
District
Office 3
Scanning Centers
(District Offices)
Formless
Document
systems
Vital Statistics Processing System
VS forms
Coding
VS forms
(coded)
Scanning
Imagers
Process
Imagers
data
1234234
1343444
1133122
Who should report the birth
 The Medical Officer of the Gov.hospital
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


(3 Months)
Medical officer of the private hospital
(3 Months)
Grama Niladari (7 days)
Parents
Occupant
Who should report the death
 The Medical Officer of the Gov.hospital




(3 Months)
Medical officer of the private hospital
(3 Months)
Grama Niladari (7 days)
Judicial officer
Occupant
Main Indicators derived by VS for Monitoring and
Evaluation of the health sector
Infant Mortality Rate
Child Mortality Rate
Maternal Mortality Rate
Age - specific Mortality Rate
Cause - specific Mortality Rate
Indicators are not 100 % accurate
due to Under coverage of death registration in
rural areas
Incompleteness of the information
included in statistical returns
Inaccuracy of information on cause of
death
Possibilities of under registration of
death
 Some hospitals where the Medical Registrars
are not available
 Some estates from which the deaths do not
report in time to the Medical Officer
 Some of the Inquirers into Sudden Deaths do
not send their reports to the Registrars directly
 Some persons do not get any interest to
registrar deaths due to unawareness of the
importance of registering a death and also the
deceased person has nothing to claim
VS data cannot released in time
Delay in receipt of statistical returns
from D.S office to the VS unit
Delay in handovering statistical
returns from registrars to D.S.offices
Deaths are registered on the place of
occurrence
 914 Birth and Death Registration Divisions
 Out of the above 65 are called as medical registrar’s
divisions located in the major hospital premises
 A death Should be informed to the relevant Registrar
within 5 days after the death
 But registration can be done within 3 months time period
at the Registrar’s Office on the declaration make by the
informant/relatives
 After 3 months and before one year the registration
should be done after an inquiry held at the District
Registrar’s Office
 After one year the report of the inquiry should be
examined and approved by the Zonal Assistant Registrar
General
If the death occurs at a
Government Hospital It is the responsibility of the Medical
Officer in-charge of the hospital to give
information regarding events occurring in
such hospital
Private hospitals are considered as a
residence and the responsibility of
registering the death rests on the relatives
of the deceased
If the death occurs at homes
The obligation for giving information rests
on the nearest relative present at death
The Grama Niladhari (Administration
Officer at the village level) has to inform
to the Registrar and the relevant person
also has to go to the Local Registrar’s
Office with the document issued by the
Grama Niladhari
Even the death can be registered without
informing to the Grama Niladhari, if the
Register is satisfied with the information is
100 percent correct
If the death occurs at an estate  An ‘estate’ means any land of which 100 or more
acres are under cultivation and which is situated
in a district declared under the Medical Wants
Ordinance to be an Estate Medical District
 Births, deaths and still births that occur in estate
scheduled under the Medical Wants Ordinance
are registered by the District Registrar of the
division in which such estates are situated
 The Superintendent of the Estate is required by
law to furnish reports of deaths and still births to
the appropriate District Registrar/Divisional
Secretary through the District Medical Officer
If the death occurs of a Sri
Lankan living abroad
Provisions exists in the Consular Act
(No.4 of 1981) for registration of birth,
death and marriage to be registered at
the Sri Lankan Diplomatic Missions in
the relevant country
Certain officers in such diplomatic
missions are Additional District
Registrars of Marriages, Births and
Deaths
Death Reporting Process
District Registrar
DS Office
Registrar of Birth,
Death &Marriage
Medical
Registrar
MOH
Grama
Niladharie
Medical Officer
Estate
Superintendent
Homes
Govt. Medical
Institutions
Estates
Certification of
Cause of Death
B33 Form
Medical Officer
Hospital
Within 24 hours
Of admission
Verbal Autopsy form
B18 Form
GN / Relative
Inquirer into
Sudden Deaths
Home
Sudden deaths
Outside the
Hospital / Home
Ways of deaths are
registered
45% of deaths are registered on the
document issued by the doctor with proper
cause of death
25% are registered on the document issued
by the Inquirer into sudden deaths – no
proper cause of death given most of the time
30% of deaths are registered on the
declaration made by the relatives of the
deceased – cause of death?
Completeness of Coverage of
Death Registration
Sector
1953
1967
1980
Urban
94.7
100.0
92.9
Rural
86.9
91.7
92.2
Estate
-
100.0
100.0
Possibilities of under registration of
death
 Some hospitals where the Medical Registrars
are not available
 Some estates from which the deaths do not
report in time to the Medical Officer
 Some of the Inquirers into Sudden Deaths do
not send their reports to the Registrars directly
 Some persons do not get any interest to
registrar deaths due to unawareness of the
importance of registering a death and also the
deceased person has nothing to claim
Steps taken to make the death
registration 100%
 Amending the Birth & Death Registration Act
and make new rules and regulations to make the
death registration compulsory
 Introducing awareness programmes to the
public – posters , leaflets, hand books and other
communication programmes
 Increase the penalty for non registration of
events
THANK YOU !
D.P.Rajapaksa
Senior Statistician
Vital Statistics Unit
Registrar General’s Department
Sri Lanka.