The concept of 'unmet need for contraception', which refers to the proportion of women who do not want to become pregnant but are not using contraception, has been used in the international population field since the 1960s. The concept was developed from the first family planning and fertility...

The United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) defines civil registration as the continuous, permanent, compulsory and universal recording of the occurrence and characteristics of vital events pertaining to the population, as provided through decree or regulation in accordance with the legal...

In an era when most societies are coping with greater demand for health resources, choices will have to be made about the provision of health services. Strategic health planning must take into account the comparative burden of diseases and injuries, and the risk factors that cause them, and how...

Health data at the national level do not reveal the inequalities associated with poverty within a country; therefore national progress toward health goals can be made without much improvement in the health status of the poor. Poverty quintile analysis is useful here: it disaggregates data on...

This case study on Colombia describes how the civil registration and national identification system and the health information system have facilitated progress toward universal health coverage. The study includes a description of Colombia’s General Social Health Insurance System (Sistema...

A health protection system based on social health insurance has had a long tradition in Slovenia. Several forms of health insurance schemes were implemented from 1896 until 1992, when health care reform legislation was passed, establishing compulsory health insurance (CHI). CHI is provided by a...

Birth certificates are the cornerstone for establishing legal identity around the world. Despite their importance, birth certificates are frequently simple, handwritten paper documents or computerized printouts, submitted with little attention to security. The birth certificate issuance process...

Gabon’s national health insurance program (Caisse National d’Assurance Maladie et de Garantie Sociale [CNAMGS]) coupled with medical coverage financing for the poorest has helped advance achievement of universal health coverage. In 1975, the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) was created...