[ad_1]
United Nations, September 10 (IANS): The Covid-19 pandemic could reverse decades of progress toward eliminating preventable child deaths, according to Unicef.
The global death toll of children under the age of five fell to its lowest point in 2019, to 5.2 million from 12.5 million in 1990, according to new mortality estimates released Wednesday by an interagency group made up of Unicef, the World Health Organization (WHO), the Population Division of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs and the World Bank Group.
Since then, UNICEF and WHO surveys have shown that the pandemic has led to major disruptions to health services that threaten to undo decades of hard-won progress.
A UNICEF survey conducted over the past few months in 77 countries found that nearly 68 percent of countries reported at least some interruption in child health check-ups and immunization services.
Furthermore, 63% of the countries reported interruptions in prenatal care and 59% in postnatal care.
A recent WHO survey of 105 countries revealed that 52% of countries reported interruptions in health services for sick children and 51% in services for managing malnutrition.
According to the responses from the countries that participated in the surveys, the most commonly cited reasons for interruptions in health services included parents avoiding health centers for fear of infection; transportation restrictions; suspension or closure of services and facilities; fewer healthcare workers due to diversions or fear of infection as a result of a shortage of personal protective equipment; and greater financial difficulties.
Afghanistan, Bolivia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Libya, Madagascar, Pakistan, Sudan and Yemen are among the worst affected countries.
Seven of the nine countries had high infant mortality rates of more than 50 deaths per 1,000 live births among children under the age of five in 2019.
[ad_2]
