WORLD BRIEFING / UNITED NATIONS
The United Nations children’s agency says 8.8 million children die every year before their fifth birthday, 40% of them in India, Nigeria and Congo.
New data released by UNICEF and published online in the British medical journal Lancet show a decline in the mortality rate for those younger than 5, a trend that has continued for the last two decades.
UNICEF Executive Director Ann Veneman said 10,000 fewer children are dying every day compared with in 1990.
Progress has been seen in every part of the world, including some of the least developed countries. But UNICEF said the toll is still unacceptably high. According to the latest data, Africa and Asia account for 93% of the deaths.
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