Comparison of Mortality Transition in China and India, 1950–2021

Abstract

This paper compares mortality transition in China and India in the period 1950–2021, highlighting similarities and differences. Mortality transition has been inconsistent in both countries, but differences remain. In China, the transition has been spread evenly across the age range, while in India, it has primarily been confined to younger ages, being markedly slow in ages 35–90. This difference in the older ages appears to explain the main difference between the respective mortality transition in the two countries. To address its ongoing mortality transition, the paper concludes, India needs to reinvigorate its health-care delivery system to meet the health care needs of the old people. The paper also emphasises using geometric mean of the age-specific probabilities of death as an appropriate measure to analyse mortality transition.

Keywords

• mortality transition
• china
• india
• geometric mean
• life expectancy
• decomposition