India among five countries responsible for 50% newborn deaths
October 19th, 2017
India is among the five countries – Pakistan, Nigeria, Congo and Ethiopia being the others – responsible for half of all new-born deaths in the world, according to a UN report. The report, “Levels and Trends in Child Mortality 2017”, revealed that 5.6 million children died before reaching the age of five in 2016. However, this is a marked decrease compared to 2000 when nearly 9.9 million children had died before turning five. While India was accountable for 24 per cent of these new-born deaths, Pakistan accounted for 10 per cent, Nigeria 9 per cent, the Democratic Republic of Congo 4 per cent and 3 per cent of the deaths occurred in Ethiopia. Also, according to report, India has witnessed 66 per cent decline in the under-five mortality rate from 1990 to 2015 but most of the new-born deaths – 24 per cent of all – still occur in the country.