In a report released by the United Nations, it was revealed that the number of children globally who died before their fifth birthday hit a record low of 4.9 million in 2022. Despite this achievement, it still means there is one death every six seconds in this age group.
Although the mortality rate for children under five has decreased significantly since 2000, there is still work to be done in reaching the goal of reducing preventable deaths in this demographic by 2030. Progress has slowed down since 2015, according to the report.
Juan Pablo Uribe, director for health nutrition and population at the World Bank, called the numbers “an important milestone”, but emphasized that more needs to be done to save children’s lives.
While some countries like Cambodia, Malawi, and Mongolia have managed to reduce under-5 mortality rates by over 75% since 2000, the global picture varies. The majority of deaths in babies and children under 5 in 2022 occurred in sub-Saharan Africa, which accounted for 57% of the total deaths despite only having 30% of the live births that year.
Southern Asia accounted for approximately a quarter of both deaths and live births in the same year. The report highlighted that around half of the global deaths in this age group were among newborns.
However, the U.N. partners noted that the report was restricted by a lack of data in the most affected countries. The deaths were primarily caused by preventable or treatable factors such as pre-term birth, pneumonia, or diarrhea.
The U.N. emphasized that improving access to primary health care and community health workers could greatly enhance the situation. However, factors like climate change, increasing inequity, conflict, and the long-term repercussions of COVID-19 could all pose threats to progress.
The report stressed the urgent need for global concerted efforts to address the underlying issues leading to child mortality. The partners behind the report included Unicef, the U.N. population division, and the World Health Organization.
Overall, while significant progress has been made in reducing child deaths globally, there is still a long way to go in achieving the ultimate goal of ensuring that all children reach their fifth birthday healthy and thriving.
Reporting by Jennifer Rigby; Editing by Angus MacSwan
