Introduction
The purpose of this report is to provide a brief introduction to the civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) systems in Sierra Leone
The information was collected through a questionnaire completed by the National Civil Registration Authority in February 2019 and supplemented by a desk review of available documents. The report presents country background, selected indicators relevant for CRVS improvement processes, stakeholders’ activities and resources available and needed to strengthen CRVS systems, coordination, among others.
Disclaimer: The boundaries and names shown and the designations used on this map do not imply official endorsement or acceptance by the United Nations.
Country profile
Sierra Leone is bordered by Guinea on the north and northeast west, Liberia on the south and southwest and the Atlantic Ocean on its west coast. It has a long coastline along the Atlantic Ocean to its south and south-west. Sierra Leone has five major administrative regions: (i) Eastern, (ii) Northern, (iii) North-Western, (iv) Southern and (v) Western.
72,300
7.9
2019
3.2%
59%
CRVS Dimensions
Birth
| Completeness of birth registration | N/A |
| Children under 5 whose births were registered |
81.1% (2017 |
| Births attended by skilled health professionals |
81.6% (2014 |
| Women aged 15-49 who received antenatal care from a skilled provider | N/A |
| DPT1 immunization coverage among 1-year-olds |
97% (2016 |
| Crude birth rate (per 1,000 population) |
35 (2016 |
| Total fertility rate (live births per woman) |
4.5 (2016 |
| Adolescent fertility rate (per 1,000 girls aged 15-19 years) |
115.6 (2016 |
| Population under age 15 |
42.1 (2017 |
Death
| Completeness of death registration | N/A |
| Crude death rate (per 1,000 population) |
13 (2016 |
| Infant mortality rate (probability of dying by age 1 per 1,000 live births) |
82 (2017 |
| Under five mortality rate (probability of dying by age 5 per 1,000 live births) |
111 (2017 |
| Maternal mortality ratio (per 100,000 live births) |
1360 (2015 |
Marriages and divorces
| Marriage registration rate | N/A |
| Women aged 20-24 first married or in union before age 15 |
13 (2014 |
| Women aged 20-24 first married or in union before age 18 |
39 (2014 |
| Divorce registration rate | N/A |
Vital statistics including causes of death data
| Compilation and dissemination of CR-based statistics | N/A |
| Medically certified causes of death data | N/A |
Civil registration system
Legislative Framework
In 2016, the Parliament of the Republic of Sierra Leone enacted the National Civil Registration Act. The Act provided for the establishment of the National Civil Registration Authority , the continuous and compulsory registration of citizens and non-citizen residents in Sierra Leone as well as issuance of Biometric National Identity Cards with unique non-duplicating and non-replicating National Identification Numbers assigned to every resident in Sierra Leone
Management, organizations and operations
National CRVS systems coordination mechanisms
The following Committees and Taskforce facilitate the CRVS Systems improvement process in Sierra Leone. Each of these Committees or structures operate within the Terms of Reference coordination, leadership and governance structure agreed on by all stakeholders associated with CRVS.
The CRVS Steering Committee provides policy directive and technical advice to Government for decision making and general coordination of CRVS in Sierra Leone. Includes Ministry of Internal Affairs (Chair), Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Health & Sanitation, Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development; Ministry of Information; Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs, Justice Ministry, Education Ministry, National Civil Registration Authority; Statistics Sierra Leone; National Electoral Commission; United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) (Co-chair); European Union (EU); British Department for International Development (DfID); World Health Organization (WHO); Irish Aid; United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF); United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA); Plan International; World Bank; and African Development Bank.
The Sub-committees on Births and Deaths includes NCRA; UNICEF; Plan International; Ministry of Local Government and Rural development; Ministry of Health and Sanitation; Statistics Sierra Leone; and WHO.
Technical Working Group
The CRVS Taskforce / Technical Working Group at National and District Levels provides technical advice on Thematic areas (birth, death, marriages, Divorce, Adoption, ID Management, etc.) and constitutes Subject Matter Specialists from various Institutions collaborating with the CRVS Programme Sub-committees on Births and Deaths. Includes National Civil Registration Authority (NCRA) – Chair, Ministry of Health and Sanitation; Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development; Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs; Statistics Sierra Leone; National Electoral Commission; Immigration Department; National Social Security and Insurance Trust (NSSIT); UNICEF; WHO, UNFPA, National Revenue Authority, Ministry of Education, Plan International, Civil Society Organizations, and others NCRA; UNICEF; Plan International; Ministry of Local Government and Rural development; Ministry of Health and Sanitation; Statistics Sierra Leone; and WHO.
Administrative level registration centres
The administrative hierarchy for Civil Registration is: National, Regional, District and Chiefdom/community levels. The lowest administrative unit where the local civil registration offices exist isat community level in the chiefdoms. The next higher NCRA offices are at District levels, which report to the Regional and National levels i.e. Births and Death Registration Centres. There are currently 2,946 Local Civil Registrars throughout the country. Out of these, 346 are NCRA employees serving urban areas in 17 NCRA District Offices across the country. In the rural areas, registration is conducted by 2,600 health workers in 1,300 health facilities across the country through a Memorandum of Understanding duly signed with the Ministry of Health and Sanitation for use of health facilities and where necessary, health professionals.
Accessibility of civil registration services
Most households reside less than 5 kilometers from district registration offices or health facilities. NCRA estimates that the time it would take the furthermost service seekers to reach a registration centre is less than one hour by motorcycle, which is the common mode of transport.
Registration of vital events
Some highlights in the current registration process.
- Vital events registered are: Birth, Death, Foetal death, Marriage, Divorce, Nullity, Adoption, Legal separation, Legitimatization and Recognition.
- Identity management is a core business of NCRA.
- National Identification and the Civil Registration Systems are linked through unique individual numbers.
- Causes of death information is recorded during death registration.
- Definitions of these vital events are aligned to the United Nations’ international recommendations
United Nations. 2014. Principles and Recommendations for a Vital Statistics System - Revision 3. Statistics Division, Statistical Papers, Series M No. 19/Rev.3. http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/standmeth/principles/M19Rev3en.pdf . - Registration of births, marriages, divorces and deaths is free.
- Registration of vital events is mostly paper-based at this stage.
- Legal and statistical records are prepared separately.
- Birth and death certificates are issued free but charges are levied for certificates associated with late registrations. Fees for vital events is given in Table 1 below.
Table 1: Direct costs associated with obtaining vital events certificates in US Dollars (USD) and Sierra Leonian Leone (LE)
|
Vital events |
Cost of certificates |
Remarks |
|
Births |
No fee for registration within the statutory period |
Fee is charged for late (USD 0.17 or Le 1,500) or delayed registration (USD 0.34 or Le 3,000) and for a certified true copy (USD 0.57 or Le 5,000) |
|
Marriages |
USD 5.7 (Le 50,000) |
Office of the Registrar and Administrator General |
|
Divorces |
USD 5.7 (Le 50,000) |
Office of the Registrar and Administrator General |
|
Deaths |
No fee for registration within the statutory period |
Fee is charged for late (USD 0.17 or Le 1,500)or delayed registration (USD 0.57 or Le 5,000) and for a certified true copy (USD 0.57 or Le 5,000) |
|
Source: NCRA |
Sierra Leonian Leone (Le) 1 = US$ 0.0001 |
|
Backlog of unregistered births
There is an estimated 19 percent backlog of unregistered births in Sierra Leone
Interface with other sectors and operations
Sierra Leone is in the process of building an Integrated National Civil Registration System, whereby different databases would be linked through a unique National Identification Number issued by the NCRA to individuals. National identification and Civil Registration Systems are already linked. Databases of the NCRA and other Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies such as the Ministry of Health and Sanitation, Statistics Sierra Leone, National Social Security Insurance Trust, Electoral Commission, National Revenue Authority and Immigration among others, will be linked to ensure interoperability. This will also ensure accountable social service delivery and promote good governance.
Vital statistics system
The National Civil Registration Act, 2016 mandates NCRA to collect, compile, abstract and publish vital statistics from civil registers. The Statistical Act of 2002 vests responsibility on Statistics Sierra Leone to collect, compile and disseminate data and statistics from censuses, sample surveys and administrative records
Causes of death
NCRA is mandated by law to collect, compile, abstract and publish statistics on causes of death. A Registration Officer is required to enter in the register of deaths, the required particulars associated with the event and the cause of the death as certified by a registered Medical Practitioner. Causes of death information is yet to be comprehensively recorded according to the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) format and disseminated.
Digitization
Unlike civil registration laws in many African countries, The National Civil Registration Act 2016 opens the door for creating an electronic registration system and implementing new technology to improve the CRVS systems in Sierra Leone. Efforts to make this real is on course with commitments from stakeholders in the country.
Computerization
Not all local registrations offices in the country have computers. Computers are in the urban registration centres only. The plan is to have computers at all chiefdom level registration centres, when established.
Not all health facilities have computers. The National civil registration Authority has done assessments to ascertain the readiness for the establishment of permanent and continuous civil registrations in all Health facilities.
Electronic media are used to transfer vital statistics data from the civil registration system to the office responsible for compiling vital statistics.
|
Computers used in |
Yes |
No |
Remarks |
|
All local registrations offices in the country |
|
|
Computers are in the urban registration centres only. The plan is to have computers at all chiefdom level registration centres, when established. |
|
Urban centers |
|
|
Computers are used for civil registration. |
|
Health facilities |
|
|
The National civil registration Authority has done assessments to ascertain the readiness for the establishment of permanent and continuous civil registrations in all Health facilities. |
|
Other, please specify |
|
|
Electronic media are used to transfer vital statistics data from the civil registration system to the office responsible for compiling vital statistics. |
Mobile technology application
Currently, mobile technology is not used for notification of the occurrence of vital events or at any stage of the CRVS processes. However, plans are on course to adopt the use of mobile and other appropriate technology means to enhance notification and data transmission.
Improvement initiatives and external support
Improvement plan and budget
Strategic plan
- In 2017, a five-year strategic plan was developed for CRVS systems improvement for the plan period of 2018 - 2022.
- NCRA is conducting a Comprehensive Country CRVS Systems Assessment in April 2019 with full support from development partners led by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA). The objective of the assessment is to revise and expand the existing plan. The prioritized recommendations emanating from this exercise will serve as a starting point for the development of a comprehensive and costed five-year improvement plan in line with international guidelines.
Budgetary allocations and requirements
- Estimated total cost of CRVS-related activities for 2018 – 2022: US$ 7,716,912
- Government allocation for CR systems for the 2019 fiscal year: US$ 220,823
- Development Partners’ support for (i) Civil Registration System: UNICEF, US$ 400,000 and UNDP, US$ 310,000 (ii) Identity registration process: European Union: Euro 1.0 million. This is an indicative budget for the fiscal year 2019.
Activities identified in the national CRVS systems improvement plan as high priorities
Support from development partners
The development partners that provided and continue to support the civil registration and vital statistics systems improvement initiative are listed below.
Proposals to improve coordination
Coordination was identified as key element by NCRA in the National CRVS Systems landscape. The following suggestions were made to improve working arrangements for national stakeholders and Development Partners.
National CRVS stakeholders
- The quarterly CRVS Steering Committee meeting should be organized regularly and heads of agencies (both development partners and government line functionaries) should endeavor to attend;
- The Government of Sierra Leone needs to ensure a dedicated political will and commitment to fully fulfil its financial commitment towards CRVS improvement; and
- The Government should have a national CRVS strategic plan that is owned by all stakeholders.
National institutes and development partners
- The National CRVS Taskforce should meet monthly and each institution should have designated representatives.
- NCRA should develop and maintain the production of quarterly stakeholder CRVS activity reports and plans.
- NCRA should link district and national level stakeholder meetings with the central level for the improvement of CRVS system in the country.
Additional Materials
Websites
Additional materials
The following are results of an Internet search:
Government of Sierra Leone. 2014. Establishing 21st Century Identity Management in Sierra Leone: Strategic Directions for Integrating Civil Registration and Identification. https://www.crc4d.com/downloads/2014-04-establishing-21st-century-identity-management-sierra-Leone.pdf
UNDP Sierra Leone 2017 Annual Report: The next phase of development. https://www.undp.org/content/dam/sierraleone/docs/annualreports/UNDP%20Sierra%20Leone%20Annual%20Report%202017.pdf
Conclusion
The process to transform the CRVS System into a modern and fully functional system has strong political support from the Government of Sierra Leone. This is demonstrated by the strong support from His Excellency, the President of the Republic of Sierra Leone who is keen to see a viable CRVS System implemented in the shortest possible time. His Cabinet, Parliament and other Government functionaries also recognize the high value of such a system and are therefore committed to delivering on this nouveaux reform in order to promote democratic good governance and accountable service delivery for the people.
The Government’s commitment to the CRVS Systems improvement began with Parliament’s approval of the Civil Registration Act in 2016 and the establishment of the National Civil Registration Authority to manage and coordinate the CRVS initiative in Sierra Leone. Technically, the Civil Registration Act and practices are aligned to international principles and recommendations. The fact that Civil Registration and Vital Statistics, including Causes of Deaths, and National Identity Management, are under the NCRA is an added value as it integrates all forms of registration systems done in the past before the establishment of the NCRA.
As Sierra Leone is determined to modernize its CRVS Systems, it has to identify and address major weaknesses in the systems. The NCRA is currently conducting a Comprehensive Country Assessment, as recommended by the Second Conference of African Ministers responsible for Civil Registration and in line with the UNECA’s Africa Programme on Accelerated Improvement of Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (APAI-CRVS) guidelines. The exercise will help identify the serious challenges and possible gaps in the CRVS Systems and itemize prioritized recommendations which will serve as input for an informed, forward-looking ,action-oriented and costed strategic plan for the country that will guide various interventions from the Government and its partners.
Endnotes
[footnotes]
Annex
Organigramme du Bureau national d’enregistrement des faits d’état civil (NCRA) de la Sierra Leone