Child
death rates cut by half, but U.N. target missed
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[September 09, 2015]
By Joseph D'Urso
Of all under-five deaths, almost half occur
during a baby's first four weeks, said a new report by the World Health
Organisation (WHO), World Bank and United Nations, with one million
babies dying per year on the first day of life.
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"In order to get that further down, we need to focus on neonatal
mortality, said Flavia Bustreo, the WHO's assistant director
general.
This makes early interventions by healthcare professionals to tackle
killers like asphyxia and sepsis critical, as well as encouraging
breastfeeding and early immunisations, Bustreo told the Thomson
Reuters Foundation.
The report came as leaders prepare to meet in New York later this
month to adopt the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a new plan
of action for ending poverty.
Covering the next 15 years, the SDGs replace the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs), which expire this year.
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One of the MDGs was to cut the death rate of under-fives by
two-thirds between 1990 and 2015. The rate fell by 53 percent,
according to Wednesday's report.
"We have to acknowledge tremendous global progress," said Geeta Rao
Gupta, deputy executive director of the United Nations' children's
fund (UNICEF)."
"But the far too large number of children still dying from
preventable causes before their fifth birthday ... should impel us
to redouble our efforts to do what we know needs to be done."
Nearly half of all under-five deaths are associated with
malnutrition, said the study, which also said the rate of
improvement is accelerating, with child mortality falling quicker
since the millennium than it did in the 1990s.
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Under-fives in sub-Saharan Africa are 12 times more likely to die
than those in rich countries. Nevertheless, many poor African
countries, including Ethiopia, Uganda and Tanzania, hit the
two-thirds target.
"We know how to prevent unnecessary newborn mortality," said the
WHO's Bustreo. "Quality care around the time of childbirth ... can
save thousands of lives every year."
Around 16,000 children under five still die each day.
(Reporting By Joseph D'Urso; Editing by Ros Russell; Please credit
the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson
Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking,
corruption and climate change. Visit www.trust.org)
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