| Last update: Nov 2007 |
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| Reduction in the infant and under-five mortality rate by at least one third, in pursuit of the goal of reducing it by two thirds by 2015 | Reduce child mortality. Target: Reduce by two thirds, between 1990 and 2015, the under-five mortality rate |
The Challenge
Every year, some 9.7 million children die before their fifth birthday. Most of these children live in developing countries and die from a disease or a combination of diseases that could be easily prevented or treated -- antibiotics for pneumonia, for example, or a simple mix of salts and sugars for diarrhoea. Malnutrition contributes to around half of these deaths.
Child mortality is closely linked to poverty. Advances in infant and child survival have come more slowly in poor countries and to the poorest people in wealthier countries. Improvements in public health services are key, including safe water and better sanitation. Education, especially for girls and mothers, will also save children's lives. Raising incomes can help, but little will be achieved unless a greater effort is made to ensure that services reach those who need them most.
Trends in under five mortality
In 2006, for the first time in the modern era, the number of children dying before their fifth birthday fell below 10 million, to 9.7 million. The milestone follows a global decline in the under-five mortality rate since 1990. The global rate to be reached by 2015 is 31 per 1,000 live births, and more than 60 per cent of countries have already reduced child mortality to this level. Most countries (129) are on track to achieve MDG 4.
The new figures are drawn from a range of national data sources, including two sets of household surveys, the Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) and the Demographic Household Surveys (DHS).
Rapid declines in under-five mortality have been seen in Latin America and the Caribbean, Central and Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CEE/CIS), and East Asia and the Pacific.
However, there remain many countries with high levels of child mortality, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. An analysis of background characteristics in 63 developing countries finds that child mortality is considerably higher among children living in rural areas and in the poorest households.
Source for figures: UNICEF global databases.
References
UNICEF, Progress for Children, 2007.