A method for estimating infant mortality rate for Nepal.

ABSTRACT

This study aims to estimate Infant Morality Rate (IMR) for Nepal from the minimum relevant parameters i.e. Life Expectancy at Birth ( ) and Life Expectancy at Age one ( ). The estimates of for the purpose were extracted from various sources whereas the estimates of were derived from a suitable regression model proposed in this paper. The validity of the model was ascertained by applying the models to obtain estimates for Nepal possibly over a wide range of periods; comparing the estimates of the models with those from other sources; and by computing various relevant tests of model adequacy whenever possible. The model is found to provide quite satisfactory estimates of IMR for Nepal. For instance, the model provides IMR for 70.6 (per thousand live births) for Nepal for the year 2003, which is, closely consistent to the estimates provided by the other sources. The model may be considered suitable for estimation of IMR for Nepal when accurate estimates of and are available.