Bangladesh striving to end preventable child death before 2035

The Bangladeshi government Sunday made a Call to Action for Ending Preventable Child Deaths before 2035 at a program in Dhaka.

To achieve this goal, the South Asian country's government pledged to scale up interventions that are proven through rigorous research to address the remaining preventable causes of child mortality in Bangladesh.

Speaking at the program, Bangladeshi Health Minister AFM Ruhal Haque said Bangladesh has achieved significant success in reducing under-5 child mortality.

However, he said "the rate of neonatal mortality reduction is comparatively slower than the overall under-5 child mortality reduction. We need to address this now as 60 percent of child mortality in Bangladesh is neonatal mortality."

According to a paper distributed in the program, the three main reasons for neonatal deaths are birth asphyxia, neonatal infections, prematurity and complications at birth.

It is indeed a challenge to take effective steps against this as 71 percent deliveries still take place at home, it said. On the other hand, the main reasons for the death of under-5 children are pneumonia, drowning and diarrhoea, it added.

Under nutrition is yet another challenge for Bangladesh, as it is a major contributing factor to child mortality, mentioned the paper distributed by the United Nations Children's Fund(UNICEF) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), adding among the under-5 children, 41 percent are experiencing stunted growth.

Bangladesh is committed to scaling up comprehensive nutrition packages for women, infants and young children, it said.

UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake said between 1991 and 2011, under-5 deaths fell by almost 75 percent, thanks, in part, to the organization's commitment to innovation and knowledge- sharing.

"The challenge now is to achieve high levels of coverage of existing and new interventions, such as vaccinations and skilled birth attendants, by targeting the poorest populations where infant and child mortality remain high," he said.

According to the paper, Bangladesh has stepped up its efforts to bring down neonatal and child mortality to 20 per 1,000 live births by 2035 along with 23 other countries in the world.

The success in achieving this target, however, depends on the partnership and ownership of the private sector, development partners, UN agencies, professional bodies, civil society and the population at large, it added.

USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah said, "Proven through rigorous research, the set of life-saving interventions identified in this Call to Action today represents a costed plan that is results- oriented and makes all parties accountable for tracking progress toward this landmark goal."

"Together, we will strive for a future where every mother has the opportunity to see her child celebrates his or her 5th birthday."