Child health in the South-East Asia Region

Member States in the Region have demonstrated significant progress in reducing newborn and child mortality over the last two decades and the Region achieved the MDG4 target of two-third reduction in under-five mortality in 2016. The progress has continued during the SDG phase and by 2019 five countries in the Region achieved the 2030 target of under-five and newborn mortality and the Region as a whole is likely to reach the 2030 target for under-five mortality but may narrowly miss the newborn mortality target.  

In the South-East Asia Region, around 52% of under-five mortality is contributed by deaths during the neonatal period. The most common causes of under-five mortality in the Region is the complications of prematurity followed by pneumonia and diarrhoea. Commonest causes of neonatal mortality are prematurity, birth asphyxia and neonatal infections.  

Effective and relatively inexpensive evidence-based interventions to prevent newborn and child mortality are well known. These must be delivered across life course continuum of RMNCAH and at all levels of care from home and community, to first level to referral level health facilities linked through a functional referral system. 

However, the coverage of evidence-based interventions remains low and uneven in several Member States. There is a large disparity in child health by wealth status, residence (rural-urban), mother's education level and social status, not only in mortality but also in the coverage of interventions. In many instances the interventions are delivered at suboptimal quality. In addition, the data system in several countries need to be strengthened for better monitoring of the newborn and child health programmes.