Coordination meeting on the estimation of adult mortality
New York
Overview
The Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) of the United Nations Secretariat has the task of estimating levels and trends of mortality for all the countries of the world. The work of the Population Division in this area has encompassed both the preparation of estimates of mortality indicators and the development of methods to estimate mortality, particularly when the data available are incomplete or deficient. As mortality levels decrease, deaths become increasingly concentrated at older ages as is the case in a majority of developing countries today. Given that the quality of data on mortality has not improved as much as mortality levels in those countries, it is pressing to develop and test appropriate methods to estimate mortality in adult ages. In addition, in high-mortality countries, many of which are significantly affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, accounting for the effect of the epidemic on adult mortality is essential. For those reasons, the Population Division of DESA has been working on the evaluation and improvement of methodology for the estimation of adult mortality.
As part of this ongoing effort, the Population Division of DESA organizes on a regular basis coordination meetings to discuss matters related to the estimation of adult mortality. The second United Nations Coordination Meeting on the Estimation of Adult Mortality took place at United Nations Headquarters in New York on 31 July 2008. The meeting included representatives of key institutions active in the study of mortality, including agencies, funds and programmes of the United Nations system, offices of the United Nations and the regional commissions as well as national statistical offices, universities and research organizations. The meeting reviewed progress made in methods to model and estimate adult mortality in countries with deficient data and identified future directions for research and collaboration. The meeting also provided an opportunity to discuss ongoing activities in the different institutions.
Documents
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Objectives
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Agenda
Organization of work
Thursday, 31 July 2008 |
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9:30-12:30
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Morning session
I. Brief summary of mortality estimation activities
II. New components in death distribution methods
III. Sibling histories and adult mortality levels
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14:00-17:00 |
Afternoon session IV. Model life table systems
V. Old age mortality
VI. Alternative methods for estimating background and senescent mortality
VII. An epidemiological perspective to adult mortality
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