A report released by the United Nations on Tuesday said that the global number of deaths of children under 5 years old hit a record low in 2022, with the death toll falling below 5 million for the first time.
An estimated 4.9 million children will die before their fifth birthday in 2022, a 51% decrease since 2000 and a 62% decrease since 1990. Still, the report warned that progress would be “erratic” and unequal.
“There’s a lot of good news, not the least of which is that we have reached historic levels of under-five mortality… for the first time below 5 million, so 4.9 million a year,” said Helga, UNICEF Health Director Vogstad told AFP.
The report, prepared jointly by UNICEF, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Bank, shows that progress has been particularly significant in developing countries such as Malawi, Rwanda and Mongolia, where child mortality rates have increased since its implementation. dropped by more than 75%. 2000.
“Behind these numbers are the stories of midwives and skilled health workers helping mothers to give birth safely… vaccinations… children protected against deadly diseases, and [making] Home visits to support families,” UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said in a statement.
But the report warns that “this is a precarious achievement.” “Unless efforts are made to eliminate the many threats to the health and survival of newborns and children, progress risks being stalled or reversed.”
Researchers point to already worrying signs that the global reduction in under-five deaths has slowed, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa.
A total of 162 million children under the age of 5 have died since 2000, 72 million of them in the first month of life, as birth-related complications are one of the leading causes of death in early childhood.
The report points out that between 1 month and 5 years old, respiratory infections, malaria and diarrhea become the main killers, and these diseases are preventable.
To meet the United Nations target of reducing under-5 deaths to 25 per 1,000 births by 2030, 59 countries will need to make urgent investments in child health, researchers warn. Without adequate funding, 64 countries will not meet the target of limiting first-month deaths to 12 per 1,000 births.
“These are not just numbers on paper; they represent a shortening of real life,” the report said.
The figures also reveal stark inequalities around the world, as sub-Saharan Africa will account for half of all deaths among children under 5 by 2022.
Babies born in countries with high early childhood mortality, such as Chad, Nigeria or Somalia, are 80 times more likely to die before their fifth birthday than babies born in countries with low child mortality, such as Finland, Japan and Singapore.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, “Where a child is born should not determine whether they live or die.”
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