GLOBAL CHILD DEATHS AT HISTORIC LOW OF 4.9M IN 2022: UN REPORT

Thu 14 March 2024:

The number of children who died before the age of five globally reached a historic low of 4.9 million in 2022, according to the latest estimates released on Wednesday by the United Nations (UN) Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation.

A report by the Group found that the global under-five mortality rate has fallen by 51 percent since 2000, with several low- and lower-middle-income countries outpacing this decline. The progress is partly attributed to sufficient resources being allocated to primary health care, including child health and well-being.

However, the findings also show that despite this progress, there is still a long road ahead to ending all preventable child and youth deaths. In addition to the millions of lives lost before the age of five, the lives of another 2.1 million children and youths aged five to 24 were also cut short. Most of these deaths were concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia.

The loss of life primarily stemmed from preventable and treatable causes, such as preterm birth, complications around the time of birth, pneumonia, diarrhea, and malaria, the report said.

Many lives could have been saved with better access to high-quality primary health care, including essential low-cost interventions such as vaccinations, the availability of skilled health personnel at birth, support for early and continued breastfeeding, and diagnosis and treatment of childhood illnesses.

“It is critical to improve access to quality health services for every woman and child, including during emergencies and in remote areas,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organization.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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