Most children die of preventable causes

Every five seconds, somewhere in the world, a child under the age of 15 dies from preventable causes, adding up to 6.3 million deaths in 2017.

Most of these deaths (5.4 million) occur in the first five years of life, with newborns accounting for half of these deaths, felled by birth complications, pneumonia, diarrhoea, neonatal sepsis and malaria, which are all preventable.

In children aged five to 14, injuries, especially from drowning and road accidents, are the most prominent cause of death.

“Millions of babies and children should not be dying every year from lack of access to water, sanitation, proper nutrition or basic health services. We must prioritise providing universal access to quality health services for every child, particularly around the time of birth and through the early years, to give them the best possible chance to survive and thrive,” said Dr Princess Nono Simelela, assistant Director-General for Family, Women and Children’s Health at World Health Organisation, in a joint report containing new mortality estimates by UNICEF, WHO, the United Nations Population Division and the World Bank.

While the number of children dying before their fifth birthday has fallen dramatically from 12.6 million in 1990 to 5.4 million in 2017, challenges remain in certain segments.

BLEAK CHANCES OF SURVIVAL

According to the report, children in sub-Saharan Africa face the bleakest chances of survival, with one in 13 dying before their fifth birthday, which is 14 times higher than the average of one in 185 children dying before age five in high-income countries.

Somalia has the highest under five mortality rate (one in eight children die before age five), while Iceland and Slovenia have the lowest (one in 476).

Globally, child deaths are higher in rural areas, and babies whose mothers don’t have secondary or higher education, are twice as likely to die than their counterparts from educated mothers.

“We have made remarkable progress to save children since 1990, but millions are still dying. Without urgent action, 56 million children under five will die from now until 2030 – half of them newborns. With simple solutions like medicines, clean water, electricity and vaccines, we can change that reality for every child,” said Laurence Chandy, UNICEF Director of Data, Research and Policy.

To further reduce child deaths, the report recommends universal access to quality, affordable health services before, during and after birth and throughout the early years, including access to safe and affordable quality obstetric, anaesthetic and surgical care.

It also calls for investments in the health and education of all people to boost the quality of life.