United-Kingdom, Yesterday UNICEF and the WHO launched a new action plan
tackling for the first time two of the three biggest killer diseases of
children under five in Africa – pneumonia and diarrhoea. The plan aims to
end preventable deaths of children in Africa from these diseases by 2025,
which would save over 1 million lives a year.
*Nelson Gomonda, WaterAid’s Pan-Africa Programme Manager (
http://www.wateraid.org), said:
“This Action Plan is all about doing more of what we already know works:
Increasing access to drinking water and adequate sanitation, promoting
breast feeding, improving availability of vaccines and making sure that
treatment is on hand when children need them.****
“It is the responsibility of African Governments to embrace and implement
the plan and the cost of inaction and failure will be high and measured in
the lives of the continent’s children. With the support and assistance of
organisations like WaterAid and donors, we can succeed in ending these
preventable deaths.”
Every year in Sub-Saharan Africa over 600,000 children under five die of
pneumonia while more than 400,000 die of diarrhoea. Between them, they account
for over a quarter (28%) of all the child deaths on the continent.****
The Action Plan calls for a substantial shift is in how poverty reduction
efforts are coordinated in Africa. Aid programmes need to bring together
different areas of work, such as access to drinking water, health and
education, to make them more effective.****
The new plan calls on governments to prioritise investment in the poorest
and least-served population groups. For example, in Africa’s towns and
cities, nearly three-quarters (73%) of the richest people enjoy access to
adequate sanitation, while for the poorest groups in these areas only 15%
have access.
Alongside dozens of development charities, WaterAid has signed a joint
statement in support of the new Action Plan that declares:****
‘We can save countless lives by using an integrated approach to fighting
disease, improving access to proven interventions and by prioritising
efforts to reach the poorest and most marginalised children. As the latest
data demonstrate, the Global Action Plan on Pneumonia and Diarrhoea
provides the most cost-effective approach and will help achieve the
greatest impact in reducing child deaths.’
The statement offers recommendations for developing country governments,
businesses and donors.