Mortality in Morocco based on results from the EPNS

This study uses the data from Moroccos Health and Demographic Survey (EPNS) to estimate levels of infant and juvenile mortality to examine infant and adult mortality rates and understand their differences. During 1980-87 infant mortality rates (IMR) declined from 91 to 72 because of the Governments explicit health policy the effects of urbanization job opportunities in the urban areas access to health services and equipment in the urban areas. The IMR in the rural areas are 83/1000 as against 52/1000 in the urban; the differences for those under 5 are 118/1000 in the rural areas as against 57/1000 in urban. In Morocco regional differences reflect differences in IMR rates as evidenced by the southern region with the highest IMR. Education remains the most powerful variable predicting infant and juvenile mortality rates as evidenced by the differences between rural and urban parents. Husbands profession also has a critical effect on the mortality levels of children; those children that survive to 5 have fathers whose jobs are stable as against seasonal and unstable employment. Diarrhea remains the principal cause of death while measles has been controlled in Morocco since 1982 with the vaccine. Mortality levels among adults are lower in comparison with those of children; however among adults the levels are higher for women; also place of residence within the country is significant in this regard. Life expectancy is about 15 years lower in the Southern region. Women from the Northwestern region have the highest life expectancy in the country (58.1) and parents whose daughters are illiterate have a shorter life expectancy that those with literate daughters because daughters education is correlated with the social and economic status of parents.