Every Child No. 3, 2009
UNITED STATES FUND FOR UNICEFNo. 3, 2009
Whatever it takes to save a child.
Saving LivesDuring Wartime
U.S. Fund or UNICEF
In Ti Iue:
Feature
9
Saving Lives During Wartime
Departments
1
UNICEF in the Field
4
Inside the U.S. Fund
8
Field Visit to the Lao People’s Democratic Republic
14
Partner Profles:Cli Wilson — In Memory o Gene WilsonJasveer Virk and Paul KavanaghManjari Saha
Every Child No. 3, 2009
1
Last month, UNICEF released some star-tlingly good news: the number of children
dying before their fth birthday has fallen
to its lowest level ever — about 8.8 million
per year, or 24,000 per day. That gure is
down from 25,500 three years ago and is aclear indication that the efforts of UNICEF,its partners, and its supporters are making
a considerable impact on the ght for child
survival.
Perhaps most signicant is that the de
-cline in child mortality is actually acceler-ating — evidence that UNICEF’s low-cost,proven interventions are reaching morechildren. This development is proof thatUNICEF is getting closer to the day whenzero children die of preventable causes.While this news is cause for celebration,U.S. Fund for UNICEF President and CEOCaryl M. Stern declared that 24,000 childrendying each day is a moral outrage. “WhenI kissed my child this morning,” she said,“I knew that there were 24,000 moms whowere not going to get to do that today. Thatis a horrible thought.”She added that the full effect of the glob-
al nancial downturn on child mortality
might not yet be known. “Right now, ourbiggest fear is that the economic crisis couldstall or reverse the progress,” Stern said.The new estimates are based on statis-tics gathered between 1990 and 2008. Theyare a result of the collection and analysis ofexpert demographic and health data fromUNICEF, the World Health Organization,the World Bank, and the United NationsPopulation Division.The information shows a 28 percent de-cline in child mortality between 1990 and2008 and indicates that progress has beenachieved in every part of the world. Oneparticularly striking example is Malawi,
where under-ve mortality fell by more
than 55 percent between 1990 and 2008.Advances like these are attributable tothe growing use of key health interventions,including immunizations, vitamin A sup-plements, and insecticide-treated mosquitonets to guard against malaria. UNICEF hasbeen at the forefront of delivering theseand other lifesaving solutions all acrossthe globe. UNICEF-led measles immuniza-tion drives, for example, helped reduce theglobal incidence of this lethal disease by 74percent between 2000 and 2007.“We know what interventions work,”said Stern. “Reaching zero preventabledeaths is not a dream. We can achieve this,but momentum has to be accelerated, so thatno mother experiences the loss of a belovedchild to a completely avoidable cause.”
For more inormation on the recent drop in child mortality, please visit: uniceusa.org/24000
Child Mortality Falls to Record Low
UNICEF IN ThE FIEld
Floodwaters submerging entire towns in the Philippines. A crushing earthquake in Indone- sia. A tsunami in Samoa. These three emergen- cies recently struck within days o one another throughout Asia-Pacifc, leaving scores o chil- dren and their amilies homeless, vulnerable to disease, and in desperate need o assistance.UNICEF has permanent ofces in all countries aected by these recent disasters and was im- mediately on the scene with pre-positioned sup- plies such as tents, blankets, medicines, ood,and water purifcation tablets. But children inthe region have a long, difcult road ahead — and they need help.To provide a lieline to children impacted in Asia- Pacifc, please visit uniceusa.org/asiapacifc
UNICEF Responds to Multiple Emergencies in Asia-Pacifc
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Every Child No 3, 2009
The magazine of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF. In this issue: Saving lives during wartime; child mortality falls to a new low; field visit to Lao PDR; and partner profiles.
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