NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) More than 1 million babies die the day they are born every year, and the 14 countries with the highest rates of first-day deaths are all in Africa, according to a new report released Tuesday.
Somalia, Congo, Mali, Sierra Leone and Central African Republic are the five countries with the highest rates of such deaths, according to the report "Surviving the First Day" from the aid group Save the Children.
"Health care for mothers in sub-Saharan Africa is woefully insufficient. On average, only half the women in the region receive skilled care during birth," the report said. "The region as a whole has only 11 doctors, nurses and midwives per 10,000 people, less than half the critical threshold of 23 generally considered necessary to deliver essential health services."
The numbers in Somalia a country wracked by 20 years of violence with little established government and few health services are particularly grim. Eighteen out of 1,000 babies in Somalia die the day they are born, the report said. Five percent of newborns die within the first month of life and one in six won't live to age 5, it said.
"What's worse, Somalia has seen absolutely no improvement in newborn or child survival in at least two decades," it said. Somali women have on average more than six children, the second-highest fertility rate in the world.
Pre-birth care to expectant mothers is largely not available in Somalia, said Dr. Omar Saleh, a World Health Organization official who frequently travels to health facilities in rural Somalia.
"And then the natal care itself, which is delivery, some of the obstructed labors are delayed due to the long distances to medical care or insecurity or high prices of transport," Saleh said. "And then after delivery the main thing is the availability of incubators. And the whole science of neo-natal care is a huge science that is not well developed in Somalia."
The one positive: "Everybody is working on it," he said. "The good thing is that everybody is aware."
In terms of absolute numbers, the most first-day deaths occur in India more than 300,000 per year, the report said. Nigeria has nearly 90,000 per year.
Improvements in access to contraceptives, maternal nutrition and breastfeeding practices will save more lives, Melinda Gates, of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, wrote in a forward to the report.
"Saving newborn lives will prevent incalculable suffering. It is also a vital piece of the global development agenda. The long-term economic prospects of poor countries depend on investments in the health, nutrition and education of the people, particularly the women and young children living there," Gates wrote.
Nearly all of newborn deaths 98 percent occur in developing countries, a statistic that underlines a widening gap between the health of the world's rich and poor, the report says.
"A mother in sub-Saharan Africa, for example, is 30 times more likely than a mother in an industrialized country to lose a newborn baby at some point in her life," the report concluded. "On average, one in six African mothers is likely to lose a newborn baby, a commonplace but largely untold tale of grief."
Alex 46 mins ago Report Abuse
Its funny.. in my western civ class in college, the text book we used blamed colonization/imperialism by a dozen different countries for the terrible shape that africa is in. However, Africa seems to be getting worse and not better and the last country (italy) to break all ties with a colony in africa was nearly 50 years ago.. so.. whats their excuse? 50 years after our break with britain, the US was flourishing. Africa is a cesspool of warmongering and disease.
Randy 4 hrs ago Report Abuse
Stop having 20 babies when you can't even feed yourself...
David 50 mins ago Report Abuse
Wherever there are a preponderance of young black males in this world, you will have poverty, violence, and high birth rates. Doesn't matter if it's Africa or Detroit, you get the same result.
been there 13 mins ago Report Abuse
High fertility rate....the world has too many people now. Maybe, if they could figure out what causes all these births.....they might not have so many. Can't feed the children they have, so keep having more and more.
Frodo Speaks! 45 mins ago Report Abuse
I don't mean to be cold and callous, but this is natural selection. Those countries cannot support the masses they have, yet we continue to assist them and they have more babies that die.
AA 33 mins ago Report Abuse
Africa: Hellhole with a great zoo. Nothing will every improve. Poster of a mother surrounded by a bunch of kids and hundreds of flies.
Lovemycountry 16 secs ago Report Abuse
You just can't help these people. You will See African president coming here in USA every now and then begging for help (blood beggar)
Henry White 28 mins ago Report Abuse
Doesn't help that they breed like rabbits...., take away all foreign aid and see the danger disappear. In fact, try it here with welfare!!
anonymous 49 mins ago Report Abuse
Color me shocked.
REALLY 54 mins ago Report Abuse
I have often wondered if providing aid to these 3rd World Countries does not truly help the sufferring but actually prolongs it and has created an endless story of hungar, disease, and death. Our intentions are good, but the result is horrific.
Good Ol' Cousin Fred 54 mins ago Report Abuse
Monkey see, Monkey do. They need to stop having promiscuous sex and try to figure out how to get along. They don't address the issue that the men in Africa act like a bunch of animals, raping, looting, and murdering each other. That ghetto mentality never makes any sense.
Stan 17 mins ago Report Abuse
Every country in the world that is run by blacks are all starving and sponging off hard working Americans. Why aren't those breeders being fixed? The white people of the world cannot continue to feed and clothe the lazy black breeders.
Somalia, Congo, Mali, Sierra Leone and Central African Republic are the five countries with the highest rates of such deaths, according to the report "Surviving the First Day" from the aid group Save the Children.
"Health care for mothers in sub-Saharan Africa is woefully insufficient. On average, only half the women in the region receive skilled care during birth," the report said. "The region as a whole has only 11 doctors, nurses and midwives per 10,000 people, less than half the critical threshold of 23 generally considered necessary to deliver essential health services."
The numbers in Somalia a country wracked by 20 years of violence with little established government and few health services are particularly grim. Eighteen out of 1,000 babies in Somalia die the day they are born, the report said. Five percent of newborns die within the first month of life and one in six won't live to age 5, it said.
"What's worse, Somalia has seen absolutely no improvement in newborn or child survival in at least two decades," it said. Somali women have on average more than six children, the second-highest fertility rate in the world.
Pre-birth care to expectant mothers is largely not available in Somalia, said Dr. Omar Saleh, a World Health Organization official who frequently travels to health facilities in rural Somalia.
"And then the natal care itself, which is delivery, some of the obstructed labors are delayed due to the long distances to medical care or insecurity or high prices of transport," Saleh said. "And then after delivery the main thing is the availability of incubators. And the whole science of neo-natal care is a huge science that is not well developed in Somalia."
The one positive: "Everybody is working on it," he said. "The good thing is that everybody is aware."
In terms of absolute numbers, the most first-day deaths occur in India more than 300,000 per year, the report said. Nigeria has nearly 90,000 per year.
Improvements in access to contraceptives, maternal nutrition and breastfeeding practices will save more lives, Melinda Gates, of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, wrote in a forward to the report.
"Saving newborn lives will prevent incalculable suffering. It is also a vital piece of the global development agenda. The long-term economic prospects of poor countries depend on investments in the health, nutrition and education of the people, particularly the women and young children living there," Gates wrote.
Nearly all of newborn deaths 98 percent occur in developing countries, a statistic that underlines a widening gap between the health of the world's rich and poor, the report says.
"A mother in sub-Saharan Africa, for example, is 30 times more likely than a mother in an industrialized country to lose a newborn baby at some point in her life," the report concluded. "On average, one in six African mothers is likely to lose a newborn baby, a commonplace but largely untold tale of grief."
Alex 46 mins ago Report Abuse
Its funny.. in my western civ class in college, the text book we used blamed colonization/imperialism by a dozen different countries for the terrible shape that africa is in. However, Africa seems to be getting worse and not better and the last country (italy) to break all ties with a colony in africa was nearly 50 years ago.. so.. whats their excuse? 50 years after our break with britain, the US was flourishing. Africa is a cesspool of warmongering and disease.
Randy 4 hrs ago Report Abuse
Stop having 20 babies when you can't even feed yourself...
David 50 mins ago Report Abuse
Wherever there are a preponderance of young black males in this world, you will have poverty, violence, and high birth rates. Doesn't matter if it's Africa or Detroit, you get the same result.
been there 13 mins ago Report Abuse
High fertility rate....the world has too many people now. Maybe, if they could figure out what causes all these births.....they might not have so many. Can't feed the children they have, so keep having more and more.
Frodo Speaks! 45 mins ago Report Abuse
I don't mean to be cold and callous, but this is natural selection. Those countries cannot support the masses they have, yet we continue to assist them and they have more babies that die.
AA 33 mins ago Report Abuse
Africa: Hellhole with a great zoo. Nothing will every improve. Poster of a mother surrounded by a bunch of kids and hundreds of flies.
Lovemycountry 16 secs ago Report Abuse
You just can't help these people. You will See African president coming here in USA every now and then begging for help (blood beggar)
Henry White 28 mins ago Report Abuse
Doesn't help that they breed like rabbits...., take away all foreign aid and see the danger disappear. In fact, try it here with welfare!!
anonymous 49 mins ago Report Abuse
Color me shocked.
REALLY 54 mins ago Report Abuse
I have often wondered if providing aid to these 3rd World Countries does not truly help the sufferring but actually prolongs it and has created an endless story of hungar, disease, and death. Our intentions are good, but the result is horrific.
Good Ol' Cousin Fred 54 mins ago Report Abuse
Monkey see, Monkey do. They need to stop having promiscuous sex and try to figure out how to get along. They don't address the issue that the men in Africa act like a bunch of animals, raping, looting, and murdering each other. That ghetto mentality never makes any sense.
Stan 17 mins ago Report Abuse
Every country in the world that is run by blacks are all starving and sponging off hard working Americans. Why aren't those breeders being fixed? The white people of the world cannot continue to feed and clothe the lazy black breeders.
