Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on operations of national civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) systems 2020

Impact of the COVID-19 on CRVS systems_COVER

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted on the ability of governments to maintain services and routine functions, including the operation of national civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) systems. The UN Legal Identity Task Force (UN LIA TF) and SPC developed technical guidance in March 2020 on actions that could be taken by countries to maintain CRVS services during the pandemic. This was followed by a survey conducted between March–April 2020 by the UN LIA TF to investigate the impact of the pandemic on CRVS, as well as national responses. Online workshops were held by SPC (as Chair of the global CRVS group) and the UNLIATF in different regions of the world to disseminate these guidelines and to provide a platform for countries to share their experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. This report reviews the survey responses and governments’ experiences in conducting CRVS management during the pandemic, summarises the negative and positive aspects of the impact, and makes recommendations for future assessments of the longer-term impact on CRVS operations.

Read the Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on operations of national civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) systems 2020 report.