Child mortality declines, poverty rises-UN report

07:56 a.m. Dec 17, 1999 Eastern

By Nizam Ahmed

DHAKA, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Child mortality rates in South Asia are falling but more children are living in poverty now than a decade ago, the U.N. children's fund (UNICEF) said on Friday.

``The mortality rate under one year in the region of 1.32 billion people was 76 in 1998 against 146 in 1960. The life expectancy at birth in South Asia was 62 years in 1998 against 48 years in 1970,'' said UNICEF's ``The State of the World's Children 2000'' report released in Bangladesh.

``The mortality rate under five in South Asia comprising Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka was 114 per 1,000 in 1998, against 239 in 1960.''

But poverty has increased, the report said adding that women and children were the most at risk.

``The world has more children living in poverty now than it had 10 years ago. The situation is more unstable and more violent than it was in 1960 when leaders at the world summit pledged to reach certain goals for children and women by the year 2000.''

``Over the last 20 years, the world economy increased exponentially while the number of people living in poverty grew to...one in every five persons, including more than 600 million children.''

Women and children also made up the majority of civilians killed and injured in conflicts and were the most vulnerable to infection with HIV that causes AIDS.

The report noted successes in the health sector that had helped reduce child mortality.

``Polio, once a global epidemic, was almost eradicated and deaths from two remorseless child killers -- measles and neonatal tetanus were reduced significantly by 85 percent in the last 10 years while the world saw stunning advances in these fields.

But despite this and other successes Shahida Azfar, UNICEF representative in Bangladesh, said more work was needed.

``UNICEF seeks to address the complex challenges still faced by children at the inset of the new millennium,'' she said at the launch of the report.

``Poverty, conflicts and the spread of HIV/AIDS are reversing gains made over the past century, and posing a very real danger to the survival, development and protection of millions of the world's children.''

The UNICEF report also said the gap between the world's rich and poor was growing as the economy of over 80 countries were on decline.

``More than 1.2 billion people including 600 million children live on less than $1 a day when world's currency markets exchange $1.5 trillion each day,'' the report said.