Utilization of Deaths in the last 12 months in household to estimate mortality levels: The Kenyan case

Population censuses are particularly important in countries lacking timely and reliable system of vital statistics. It provides the only opportunity for estimating vital rates that would not otherwise be available. Most countries therefore rely heavily on censuses to obtain information on fertility and mortality rates especially at sub national levels. Most censuses in Africa, reliable estimates of the basic mortality data have always been suspect. The use of indirect methods has been employed to estimate key indicators based on Brass Type methods (UN 1983). However, in recent times many researchers have argued that demographic trends observed do not match the strong mathematical and other assumptions regarding the use of these procedures. In the Kenyan 2009 census, the indirect techniques (both adult and childhood) produced implausible results and therefore mortality indicators were obtained from deaths in the last 12 months. Data on deaths in the last 12 months have been criticized to underestimate mortality levels because of omissions in reporting. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the utility of using this approach for mortality estimations.