The global deaths of newborn babies remain alarmingly high,
particularly among the world’s poorest countries, according to the UnitedNations Children Fund (UNICEF), reports NaijaAgroNet.
A new report on newborn mortality by UNICEF with an extract made
available to NaijaAgroNet, “Every
year, 2.6 million newborns around the world do not survive their first month of
life. One million of them die the day they are born.”
Globally, UNICEF noted that in low-income countries, the average
newborn mortality rate is 27 deaths per 1,000 births, the report says. In
high-income countries, that rate is 3 deaths per 1,000.
“While we have more than halved the number of deaths among
children under the age of five in the last quarter century, we have not made
similar progress in ending deaths among children less than one month old,” said
Henrietta H. Fore, UNICEF’s Executive Director. “Given that the majority of
these deaths are preventable, clearly, we are failing the world’s poorest
babies.”
The report also noted that 8 of the 10 most dangerous places to be
born are in sub-Saharan Africa, where pregnant women are much less likely to
receive assistance during delivery due to poverty, conflict and weak
institutions. With the newborn mortality rate of 29 deaths per 1,000 births,
the global estimates rank Nigeria as the 11th highest on
newborn deaths.
In the recent Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) conducted
by the Government of Nigeria in 2016/17, the rate of newborn deaths per 1000
births is 37. This national average hides the differences between the 36 states
and the slow progress in some of them.
“A fair chance in life begins with a strong, healthy start.
Unfortunately, many children in Nigeria are still deprived of this,” said
Mohamed M Fall, UNICEF Nigeria’s Representative. “MICS data tells us that the
trend is improving but urgent action needs to be taken for Nigeria to reach the
Sustainable Development Goals. It cannot afford to fail its newborns today.”
More than 80 per cent of newborn deaths are due to prematurity,
asphyxia, complications during birth or infections such as pneumonia and
sepsis. These deaths can be prevented with access to well-trained midwives
during antenatal and postnatal visits as well as delivery at a health facility,
along with proven solutions like clean water, disinfectants, breastfeeding
within the first hour, skin-to-skin contact, proper cord care, and good
nutrition. However, a shortage of well-trained health workers and midwives
means that thousands don’t receive the life-saving support they need to
survive.
This month, UNICEF is launching Every Child ALIVE, a global campaign to demand and
deliver solutions on behalf of the world’s newborns. Through the campaign,
UNICEF is issuing an urgent appeal to governments, health care providers,
donors, the private sector, families and businesses to keep every child alive.
Isaac Oyimah/GEE
