Child mortality has halved since 1990

Child mortality is declining, but still much too high

13/09/2012

Sharply declining global infant mortality. In the last twenty years, the number of deaths of children under the age of five has almost halved worldwide, according to the latest release from the UNICEF children's aid organization. Nevertheless, around 19,000 children die every day, according to a joint report by UNICEF and other UN organizations.

From more than 12 million deaths among children under the age of five in 1990, child mortality has fallen to 6.9 million in 2011, UNICEF reports. However, the progress is very unevenly distributed. The particularly poor children and toddlers continue to carry the highest risk according to the UN Children's Fund. Often complications occur during pregnancy and childbirth, which end up deadly for the offspring. „Taken together, complications during pregnancy and childbirth are the leading cause of death in children under the age of five“, reports UNICEF. According to the latest figures, 40 percent of childhood deaths occur in the first 28 days of life. Last year, about three million babies did not survive this period.

High infant mortality due to poor hygiene and drinking water supply
As UNICEF reports, the „Five deaths from childhood: pneumonia (18 percent), premature birth defects (14 percent), diarrhea (11 percent), birth complications (9 percent), and malaria (7 percent).“ About one in three child deaths is related to chronic and acute malnutrition, according to the UN Children's Fund experts. The most effective weapons in the fight against child mortality were improvements in hygiene, drinking water and disease prevention. Vaccination - UNICEF procures around 50 percent of all vaccines worldwide - but simple and cost-effective measures such as the distribution of impregnated mosquito nets to prevent malaria have also been very promising. The training of midwives has also significantly improved children's chances of survival. Crucial, however, is above all the hygiene and clean drinking water. Because „More children die from diarrheal diseases as a result of a lack of access to clean water and safe hygiene than of AIDS, malaria and measles combined“, explained Barbara Frost of the British aid organization WaterAid.

Three million children under the age of five died
„The fight against child mortality is successful. With vaccinations, impregnated mosquito nets and better obstetrics, cost-effective methods are available that can save lives“, so the statement of the managing director of UNICEF Germany, Christian Schneider. By implementing such measures, the global infant mortality rate has fallen from 87 deaths per 1,000 live births in 1990 to 51 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2011, a decrease of 41 percent, UNICEF reports. According to UNICEF Director Anthony Lake, progress has also been significant in poor countries such as Bangladesh, Liberia and Rwanda. Here, the number of deaths among children has fallen by more than two-thirds over the past twenty years. Nevertheless, give „there is still a lot to do“, because „Millions of children under the age of five continue to die each year from preventable causes, against which there are proven and affordable resources“, stressed Lake. Clearly, progress so far is insufficient to meet the Millennium Development Goal of reducing child mortality worldwide by two-thirds by 2015, the UNICEF Director said.

Particularly high infant mortality in Sierra Leone, Somalia, Mali and Chad
According to UNICEF, that is „Risk of children dying from preventable or treatable diseases, especially in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, remains very high. For example, in Sierra Leone, the country with the highest child mortality rate, 185 children per 1,000 live births are not celebrating their fifth birthday. In Germany this affects three out of every 1,000 children. Although there are cost-effective ways to reduce child mortality, few have done well in recent years. It was „unacceptable that in countries such as Sierra Leone, Somalia, Mali or Chad, every fifth to sixth child still does not survive“, emphasized Christian Schneider. However, global development is a source of hope: for example, the number of children who died of measles has fallen from an estimated 500,000 in 2000 to 100,000 in 2011.

Deaths from severe diarrhea declined from 1.2 million to around 700,000 in the last decade. This is mainly attributed to the improved hygiene and drinking water supply. However, in order to achieve the Millennium Development Goal, the international community, local governments and aid agencies around the world need to step up their efforts to combat child mortality. (Fp)

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