Between 1.64 and 1.83 million children under 5 die each year

[Ronan Kelly]

Lancet study on decline in child mortality incorrect, says NGO



Aarti Dhar

NEW DELHI: A new study published in medical journal Lancet on accelerating decline in the deaths of children under five years between 2000 and 2010 as compared to 1990-2000 has got its figures wrong on India, says Save the Children, a non-governmental organisation.

According to the Lancet report, across 21 regions of the world, rates of neonatal, post-neonatal, and childhood mortality are declining.

The study also claims that worldwide, deaths of children under five years have dropped from 11.9 million in 1990 to an estimated 7.7 million in 2010.

Using a technique called the Gaussian Process Regression, the authors of the study claim that under-five mortality in India has come down from 84.6 per 1,000 live births in 2000 to 62.6 per 1,000 live births in 2010. ?This would mean a 22 per 1,000 decline in under-five mortality, which is incredibly good news. Unfortunately, this is a misleading picture of the reality,? CEO of the NGO Thomas Chandy said.

?The authors of the study have used a technique that works better at providing estimates where there is limited or no data. The Sample Registration System (SRS) Statistical Report 2008, places under-five mortality in the country at 69 per 1,000 live births. The SRS 2008 findings, matched by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) estimates, are based on a sample size of 7.10 million in India as a whole, with even the small States given a coverage of more than 1,00,000.

?The sample size of the SRS, which is arguably the largest in the world, helps provide robust estimates of health indicators and is more acceptable than an extrapolated figure arrived at by the study which is seven points less,? he said.

By adopting a lower and unsubstantiated rate of under-5 mortality, we are, in effect, underreporting the deaths of several hundred thousands of children. ?Believing that we have made a rapid decline in the number of deaths of children under 5 will lead to a false sense of complacency. This would be foolhardy at a time when we should be stepping up our efforts to prevent the needless deaths of children under 5. If saving the lives of millions of children were seen as less of a problem, budgetary commitments to the issue will slacken,? Mr. Chandy warned.

According to the UNICEF and SRS estimates, 1.83 million children under 5 die every year in the country. But, on the basis of the study published in the Lancet, only 1.64 million children under 5 die annually in India.
http://www.hindu.com/2010/05/30/stories/2010053063460600.htm

 

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Between 1.64 and 1.83 million children under 5 die each year

80 per cent unaware of alarming child mortality rate: survey
Press Trust Of India
New Delhi, August 22, 2010First Published: 11:41 IST(22/8/2010)
Last Updated: 11:56 IST(22/8/2010)

Nearly two million children under the age of five die every year in India, but, shockingly, 80 per cent of people are unaware of the country's alarming child mortality rate, according to a survey. The survey commissioned by the Global Movement for Children (GMC), a coalition of child rights government
organisations, found that eight in 10 respondents underestimate the levels of child mortality in India.

However, nearly 60 per cent felt that the problem of child mortality was "very serious", according to the survey conducted in five metros among middle class people.

"The middle class in India is small but it is the growing segment of society whose influence on policy makers is considerable," said Edouard Beigbeder, Chief Field Service, UNICEF, Delhi.

"It is critical for this category to be aware of the issues surrounding child mortality and be willing to take action for change to happen."

Thomas Chandy of 'Save the Children', an international child rights organisation which was part of the survey, said it was tragic that the majority of people underestimated the number of children dying every year.

"If people understood how affordable and feasible it is to prevent children dying, they'd be shocked. There is no real pressure for action largely because of lack of awareness of the scale of the problem."

According to UNICEF, about 1.83 million children under the age of five die every year in India -- the highest in the world. And 90 per cent of these deaths are due to easily preventable causes like pneumonia and diarrhoea.

The UN agency also says that India, which houses one-third of world's malnourished children, has 46 per cent of children under the age of three who are underweight.

The GMC survey was carried out to build awareness about child mortality ahead of the UN summit to be held in New York next month. The NGOs involved in the study wanted India to play a key role in tackling child mortality in that summit.

"The time is right for India to play a leadership role at the global summit in New York in order to drive momentum for tackling child mortality," said Dr Jayakumar Christian of World Vision India.

"We know that change is possible as we have already seen it in the States we work in India as well as in other countries."
http://www.hindustantimes.com/80-pe...ld-mortality-rate-survey/Article1-590175.aspx