Target 5: Reduce by two thirds, between 1900 and 2015, the under-five mortality rate
Prospects and Progress
Sadly, progress towards this goal lags behind all others, and no region is likely to achieve the Goal on current progress. In fact, only 32 of 147 countries are on-track to cut child mortality by two thirds. This year, around 10 million children will die, primarily from preventable and curable diseases. The total number of under-five deaths is dropping each year, but too slowly.
There are a number of low-cost and effective interventions that would have a dramatic impact on child mortality rates, particularly the provision of oral rehydration therapy to treat diarrhoeal diseases, insecticide-treated bednets to prevent malaria, basic antibiotics and immunization, and the strong promotion of breastfeeding. A Lancet study estimated that if these interventions were scaled-up and targeted on the most needy populations, this could reduce child mortality by almost two thirds. There has been some important efforts to increase these interventions, but more work is needed.
