World News
After remarkable progress, newborn, child, and adolescent survival is now at risk
Key Points
In 2024, 4.9 million children under the age of 5 years died.1 When compared to the loss of 10.1 million children under 5 years old in 2000, this reduction is a remarkable achievement in a relatively short period of time. However, progress in reducing child mortality has slowed since 2015.A new series of estimates published in The BMJ show that based on current trends, 60 countries are unlikely to meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (UN SDG) targets for newborn and child...
In 2024, 4.9 million children under the age of 5 years died.1 When compared to the loss of 10.1 million children under 5 years old in 2000, this reduction is a remarkable achievement in a relatively short period of time. However, progress in reducing child mortality has slowed since 2015.A new series of estimates published in The BMJ show that based on current trends, 60 countries are unlikely to meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (UN SDG) targets for newborn and child survival.123456 With fewer than five years remaining until 2030, the deadline of the UN SDG targets, the situation seems insurmountable.Yet many countries with resource constraints have made considerable progress towards newborn and child survival over the past two decades. Rwanda and Malawi have reduced under 5 mortality by 80% and 71%, respectively, since 2000, outpacing the global decline of 51%.7 Nepal, Senegal, India, Ghana, and Burundi have...