Simple, Cheap Health Remedies Cut Child Mortality In Ethiopia

Friday, January 3, 2014

Poor countries are starting to realize something that richer ones sometimes forget: Basic, inexpensive measures can have dramatic impacts on the health of a country. And they can save thousands of lives.

Take, for instance, the situation in Ethiopia.

The country used to have one of the highest rates of child mortality in the world.

“If you were a kid born in 1990 [in Ethiopia], you had a 1 in 5 chance of not surviving to your fifth birthday,” says Peter Salama, who directs UNICEF’s efforts in Ethiopia.

Since then, the country has improved that survival rate by about 60 percent. “So [Ethiopia has made] a tremendous achievement in the space of two decades,” Salama says.

Source: KDLG Radio (link opens in a new window)

Categories
Education, Health Care
Tags
reproductive health, skill development