by Martin Shardow

    NAIROBI, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- The war on child mortality has never been this intense. This follows a campaign launched by an international non-governmental organization, World Vision International (WVI), which is now calling on African governments and leaders to up the fight on child mortality.

    According to a WVI report, 9 million under fives (24,000 a day), die from preventable and curable diseases, and it is on this basis that the organization has launched a five-year global campaign dubbed Child Health Now.

    Together we can end preventable deaths in 100 countries, and is in line with the Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5 that urges governments to reduce the number of under-five child deaths by two-thirds and also lower the number of maternal deaths by three-quarters respectively, by 2015.

    It is WVI's first global campaign focused on a single issue: reducing the preventable deaths of children under five.

    “Most children succumb to preventable causes such as diarrhea, pneumonia, childbirth complications and malaria,” says WVI’s president and CEO, Kevin Jenkins. He adds: “Our experience has demonstrated that effective health care -- through simple, preventive, cost-effective measures -- is a leading factor in community development.”

    Jenkins notes that it is politics and not poverty that is killing these children. He says the politicians have made many promises, but the truth is that saving mothers and children from death is not simply a priority.

    WVI says that despite claiming the lives of almost 9 million children each year, this global toll is largely a silent emergency which needs to be urgently addressed.

    It notes that the epicenter of the child health emergency is, in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia, with approximately half of the deaths occurring in just five countries including Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, India, Pakistan and Ethiopia.

    In Nigeria for instance, WVI says that the gap between the poor and rich also translates in the number of children dying before age five.

    “Children from the poorest families, fifth of the population are three times more likely to die than those from the wealthiest fifth,” it said, noting that reducing these inequalities would in itself have a dramatic impact.

    It also pointed out that while countries such as Malawi and Liberia making significant strides in lowering child deaths, nations like Kenya and Burkina Faso have gone backwards in their efforts, an indication that business as usual will not achieve the health MDGs.

    The Liberia success emanates from the fact that President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, has used the peace dividend to increase health funding, but WVI says that while increased funding will not achieve MDG 4 by itself, its worth noting that sufficient funding is a necessary condition of providing effective health care for children and their families.

    The organization in its campaign plans to work with poor communities, millions of supporters, wider public's and any other organization to get governments to take the most effective action so that more children can live healthy lives within their communities.

    While the balance between different interventions varies according to the local context, WVI has identified three key areas that require closer attention in a bid to realize the right to child health. These include first and foremost, nutrition, and WVI notes that increased breast-feeding and complementary feeding, low cost vitamin and mineral supplements will prevent malnutrition and stunting growth. It notes that malnutrition is the underlying cause in at least 35 percent of all child deaths.

    The second intervention touches on maternal health where the organization notes that the survival and well-being of mothers is an end in itself and should demand greater focus from governments. Maternal health is also essential in achieving child health.

    The prevention and treatment of childhood diseases includes pneumonia which accounts for 19 percent; birth (neonatal) complications and infections which accounts for 40 percent; diarrhea (18 percent); malaria (8 percent); measles 2 percent and HIV/Aids 3 percent.

    It says that hygiene education-the promotion of safe sanitation and hand washing with soap, allied to improved nutrition and provision of antibiotics, if well applied, would prevent up to 85 percent of deaths from pneumonia.

    Other recommendations include a single national plan to achieve the MDG 4, noting that priority should be given to producing plans for the high-burden countries that are currently off-tack by the time of the MDG review next year.

    Also, it recommends for a full and timely donor response to support national plans , with rich countries explicitly committing that no plan will fail for lack of finance.

    Donor nations are asked to triple their aid to health by 2015 to 42.5 billion U.S. dollars a year, and ensure that the aid they give is targeted, predictable, coordinated and aligned with national policies and priorities.

    The third is a focus on equity and neglected diseases at the heart of the global effort, with governments and donors collaborating to ensure that a minimum package of health care is made available, is free of charge at the point of use; that investment in community health workers is greatly increased and that pneumonia and diarrhea and their underlying causes are prioritized in national health plans.

    WVI recommends that a comprehensive monitoring and accountability framework be put in place so to that the gathering and dissemination of data on progress towards MDG 4 at the local, national and international level are part of the a regular UN review mechanism.

    The greatest distinction of this campaign from other past ones is that it will substantially bottom-up and will seek in all its engagements to mobilize affected communities.

    Consequently, WVI estimates to spend 1.5 billion dollars over the next five years on its own health programs.

Special Report: Global News Day for Children