Global child mortality rates have fallen to less than half of what they were in 1990, according to a new WHO report released on Wednesday.
Under-five deaths dropped from 12.7 million per year in 1990 to 5.9 million in 2015. This is the first year the figure has gone below the 6 million mark, the World Health Organization said.
Although the global progress has been substantial, 16 000 children under 5 still die every day. And the 53% drop in under-five mortality is not enough to meet the Millennium Development Goal of a two-thirds reduction between 1990 and 2015.
Most child deaths are easily preventable by proven and readily available interventions. The rate of reduction of child mortality can speed up considerably by concentrating on regions with the highest levels – sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia – and ensuring a targeted focus on newborns, said UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Geeta Rao Gupta.
