Prematurity & Pneumonia Are the Main Causes of Child Deaths

What we’re showing:

The leading causes of death in 2022 for children under the age of five.

Key Takeaway

Globally, 4.9 million children under the age of five died in 2022. Nearly one-in-five of those deaths occurred because the baby was born too early; before 37 weeks of pregnancy were completed.

However there’s a huge caveat in this data.

In low income countries, where health infrastructure is suboptimal, half of the babies born two months early do not survive.

For the same preterm babies in high income countries, nearly all survive. This indicates how much neonatal support (access to warmth, breastfeeding, and basic infections care) can reduce infant mortality.

UNICEF data also offers some regional insights. In South Asia, preterm birth is the leading cause (25%) of infant deaths. In Africa however, pneumonia is the leading cause (17%) of deaths for those aged under five.

Globally, they cause nearly one-in-three preventable child deaths.