cross posted from: EQUIDAD@listserv.paho.org
The State of the World's Children 2008 – Child Survival
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)
December 2007
Available online as PDF file [164p.] at:
http://www.unicef.org/sowc08/docs/sowc08.pdf
"…..The State of the World's Children 2008 assesses the state of child survival and primary health care for mothers, newborns and children today. These issues serve as sensitive barometers of a country's development and wellbeing and as evidence of its priorities and values. Investing in the health of children and their mothers is a human rights imperative and one of the surest ways for a country to set its course towards a better future…."
"…..What is a life worth? Most of us would sacrifice a great deal to save a single child. Yet somehow on a global scale, our priorities have become blurred. Every day, on average more than 26,000 children under the age of five die around the world, mostly from preventable causes. Nearly all of them live in the developing world or, more precisely, in 60 developing countries. More than one third of these children die during the first month of life, usually at home and without access to essential health services and basic commodities that might save their lives. Some children succumb to respiratory or diarrhoeal infections that are no longer threats in industrialized countries or to early childhood diseases that are easily prevented through vaccines, such as measles. In up to half of under-five deaths an underlying cause is undernutrition, which deprives a young child's body and mind of the nutrients needed for growth and development.
Unsafe water, poor sanitation and inadequate hygiene also contribute to child mortality and morbidity…."
Download the executive summary [PDF, 618KB<http://www.unicef.org/sowc08/docs/sowc08_execsummary.pdf>\]
Content:
- 1Child survival: Where we stand
- 2 Lessons learned from evolving health-care systems and practices
- 3 Community partnerships in primary health care for mothers, newborns and children
- 4 Strengthening community partnerships, the continuum of care, and health systems
- 5 Uniting for child survival
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Mrs. Ana Lucia Ruggiero (WDC)
mailto:ruglucia@paho.org