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Demographic and Health Survey 2009-10 - Timor-Leste Ministry of ...

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Table 8.1 Early childhood mortality rates<br />

Neonatal, postneonatal, infant, child, <strong>and</strong> under-5 mortality rates for five-year periods<br />

preceding the survey, <strong>Timor</strong>-<strong>Leste</strong> <strong>2009</strong>-<strong>10</strong><br />

Years preceding<br />

the survey<br />

Neonatal<br />

mortality<br />

(NN)<br />

Postneonatal<br />

mortality 1<br />

(PNN)<br />

Infant<br />

mortality<br />

( 1q 0)<br />

Child<br />

mortality<br />

( 4q 1)<br />

Under-5<br />

mortality<br />

( 5q 0)<br />

0-4 22 23 45 20 64<br />

5-9 30 37 68 32 98<br />

<strong>10</strong>-14 36 47 83 36 115<br />

1 Computed as the difference between the infant <strong>and</strong> neonatal mortality rates<br />

Mortality trends can be examined in two ways: by comparing mortality rates for three fiveyear<br />

periods preceding a single survey <strong>and</strong> by comparing mortality estimates obtained from various<br />

surveys. However, comparisons between surveys should be interpreted with caution because quality<br />

<strong>of</strong> data, time references, <strong>and</strong> sample coverage vary. In particular, sampling errors associated with<br />

mortality estimates are large <strong>and</strong> should be taken into account when examining trends between<br />

surveys.<br />

Data from the TLDHS for the three five-year periods preceding the survey indicate a decline<br />

in childhood mortality. For example, infant mortality estimates show a decline from 83 in the <strong>10</strong> to 14<br />

years preceding the survey to 68 in the five- to nine-year period preceding the survey <strong>and</strong> to 45 during<br />

the most recent five-year period. A similar trend is seen for the other under-5 mortality indicators.<br />

Comparison <strong>of</strong> the TLDHS <strong>2009</strong>-<strong>10</strong> mortality data with the 2003 DHS survey results shows a<br />

substantial (23 percent) improvement in child survival (Figure 8.1). For example, under-5 mortality<br />

declined from 83 per 1,000 live births during the period 1999-2003 to 64 per 1,000 live births during<br />

the period 2005-<strong>2009</strong>. This is caused principally by a decrease in the infant mortality rate, from 60 per<br />

1,000 for the zero to four years preceding the 2003 DHS to 45 per 1,000 during the same period prior<br />

to the <strong>2009</strong>-<strong>10</strong> TLDHS.<br />

The decline in neonatal, infant <strong>and</strong> under-5 mortality in the five years preceding the TLDHS<br />

<strong>2009</strong>-<strong>10</strong> indicates that <strong>Timor</strong>-<strong>Leste</strong> is on track to reduce infant <strong>and</strong> under-5 mortality to reach the<br />

target for Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 4, that is, to reduce under-5 mortality by two-thirds<br />

by 2015. It is notable that the proportion <strong>of</strong> neonatal deaths to under-5 deaths (34 percent) is relatively<br />

lower in <strong>Timor</strong>-<strong>Leste</strong> than in the other neighboring countries <strong>of</strong> Indonesia, Philippines, Bangladesh,<br />

India, <strong>and</strong> Nepal as measured in the latest DHS surveys in these countries. Neonatal mortality is<br />

generally higher than postneonatal mortality, but the pattern observed in the <strong>2009</strong>-<strong>10</strong> TLDHS is<br />

unusual. The common indicators <strong>of</strong> data quality, including the proportion <strong>of</strong> neonatal deaths that<br />

occur in the first seven days, the ratio <strong>of</strong> neonatal deaths to perinatal deaths, <strong>and</strong> the heaping <strong>of</strong> deaths<br />

around one month do not show obvious problems with data quality; however, it is possible that some<br />

neonatal deaths have been omitted.<br />

Infant <strong>and</strong> Child Mortality | <strong>10</strong>1

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