The research reported in this paper was completed prior to the August 1990 and reflects the situation existing at that time. The authors remind us that a careful and systematic review of the quality of reporting of vital events is essential for the most effective use of vital records and vital statistics for medical and public health research, planning, and program evalution. The authors identify some reasons for the incomplete and inaccurate reporting of some items on the birth and death notification forms, and offer some recommendations for improvement.

Although many countries still face serious problems in attaining complete reporting of vital events, they must nevertheless pay attention to improving he quality of reporting. In this way the civil registration and ital statistics systems will be able to provide data users with reliable information which can be effectively used in a variety of programs, even before complete coverage of vital events is accomplished.

The article is technical report No. 49 of the International Institute for Vital Registration and Statistics (IIVRS), published in 1992.