Completeness of Birth Registration – Expected vs Registered Births in Kenya by County

The completeness of birth registration – often expressed as a percentage- tells us to what degree the government can account for all the children born in a given year. 

To do this, it calculates the expected number of children born in a year and compares it with the actual number of children registered by civil registration services.

Quick Facts

1. Kenya had a completeness of birth registration of 70.3% in 2024. 
2. The expected number of births in 2024 was 1,579,695. 
3. The total number of registered births was 1,110,563. 
4. Kenya had a sex ratio at birth of 106
5. Nairobi had the highest completeness registration at 130.0%.

Fewer births are registered in Kenya than expected

In 2024, Kenya registered 1,110,563 births.^[1] These births were lower than what was expected in that year, implying a lack of completeness in birth registration.

The number of expected births in 2024 was 1,579,695, higher than what was registered. 

The chart above also shows that the difference between expected and registered births has increased, suggesting a decreasing ability of the government and the civil registration services to account for and register children born in the country.

The completeness of birth registration in Kenya has declined

The gap between the number of births expected in Kenya and those registered has increased. This suggests a decline in birth registration completeness, as shown in the chart below.

In 2019, birth registration completeness was at 89% and declined to 70.3% in 2024. 

Declining completeness of birth registration in Kenya implies increased difficulties in accounting for the number of children born in a given year due to declining healthcare facility births and increasing community births.

A lower registration of births than expected extends to both male and female children

Every year, more male children are expected, but fewer are registered. 

The same is true of female children – More are expected, but fewer are registered.

The chart below shows that the expected number of male children in 2024 was 801,520. However, only 570,830 male children were registered in that year. 

In females, 778,175 girls were expected, but only 539,724 were registered in 2024. 

In 2024, the completeness of birth registration for male children was 71.2%, while that for females was 69.4%. 

More male children are born in Kenya than females.

The sex ratio at birth highlights the number of newborn males for every 100 newborn girls.^[2] Sex ratios above 100 indicate that more boys are born in that country compared to girls.

A higher number of male children born in a given year could be a result of several factors. Most prominent is the fact that the probability of a male birth is usually higher than that of a female birth.

However, in some countries and cultures, it could be a result of sex-selective abortions, with parents preferring male children over female.^[3]  

In 2024, the civil registration services in Kenya recorded a sex ratio at birth of 106 male children for every 100 females. 

The sex ratio in Kenya has remained stable, ranging between 103 and 106 male births for every 100 females since 2019.^[4]

Kenyan counties have varying levels of completeness of birth registration

The completeness of birth registration in Kenya was 70.3% in 2024. However, birth registration is not the same in all counties. Some counties have a higher completeness of registration than others. 

For instance, Nairobi had the highest completeness registration, at 130%, followed by Thraka-Nithi at 96.6% and Uasin Gishu at 96.3%. Figures above 100% suggest that these counties registered more births than expected. 

Completeness of birth registration values below 100% suggest that the number of births registered were fewer than the number of births expected. 

Counties with the lowest completeness levels were:

1. Mandera 12.4
2. Wajir 17.4
3. Turkana 29.9
4. Samburu 35.8
5. Tana River 36.9
6. West Pokot 37.6
7. Marsabit 38.5
8. Narok 43.6
9. Nyandarua 48.5
10. Lamu 48.7
11. Garissa 54.4
12. Isiolo 54.8

The UN target for registration completeness is 90%.^[5]

See Also

1. Number of deaths in Kenya by county
2. Crude birth rates in Kenya by county
3. Life expectancy at birth by county
4. Adult mortality rate in Kenya by county
5. Completeness of Dearh Registration in Kenya by County

References