UNICEF: Belarus has CIS lowest under-five-year-olds mortality rate

In 2006, for the first time in recent history, the total number of annual deaths among children under the age of five fell below 10 million, to 9.7 million. This represents a 60 per cent drop in the rate of child mortality since 1960, says the UNICEF State of the World’s Children report. When presenting the report, Ann M. Veneman, the Executive Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund, noted the impressive advancement but warned against complacency. The loss of 9.7 million young lives each year is unacceptable, when many of these deaths are preventable. Widespread adoption of basic health interventions, including early and exclusive breastfeeding, immunization, vitamin A supplementation and the use of insecticide-treated mosquito nets to prevent malaria are essential to scaling up progress, Ms Ann M. Veneman said. The authors of the report say that the success is achievable and remind of the international anti-measles initiative which led to the 68% reduction in the measles mortality rate. With stronger national strategies, the children’s mortality rate can be reduced to 4 million a year by 2015. The mortality rate in industrialized countries is 6 deaths per 1,000 children; in Central and Eastern Europe and CIS - 27 deaths per 1,000. Every sixth child under five dies in the sub-Saharan region. According to the UNICEF report, Belarus has the CIS lowest under 5 mortality rate.

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