Pneumonia and diarrhoea are killing 1 in 4 children under age of 5
A new report has revealed that Nigeria is among the countries of the world that are yet to introduce the rotavirus vaccine. Rotavirus is one of the two most common etiological agents of moderate-to-severe diarrhoea in low-income countries.
In Nigeria, diarrhea accounts for an estimated 150,000 deaths every year mainly among children under five due to unsafe water, poor sanitation and hygiene practice, a UNICEF report stated.
The IVAC 2017 Pneumonia & Diarrhoea Progress Report was released by the International Vaccine Access Center at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
It also revealed that pneumonia and diarrhoea are responsible for the death of 1 in 4 children under the age of 5. Published annually, the IVAC report explores the factors slowing progress in the most impacted countries against the world’s two biggest killers of young children.
In the report, Tanzania received the highest overall score in terms of progress made towards reaching the Global Action Plan for the Prevention & Control of Pneumonia & Diarrhoea (GAPPD) targets.
The report revealed that progress was made in vaccine coverage and breastfeeding, but treatment access is lagging. Nine of the focus countries have yet to introduce the rotavirus vaccine. These include the DRC, Ethiopia and Nigeria.
Sudan and Tanzania achieved 90% coverage rates for pneumonia vaccinations while Somalia and Tanzania met or exceeded the threshold of oral rehydration therapy for children with diarrhoea (45%).
According to the report, about half of all diarrhoea episodes and about one third of respiratory infections could be averted by breastfeeding.
“Ethiopia, Sudan and Tanzania exceeded global targets for exclusive breastfeeding within the first six months of a child’s life (50%),” the report added.
IVAC-2017-Pneumonia-Diarrhea-Progress-Report