This week, African leaders will gather in Ethiopia to celebrate 50 years since the formation of the Organisation of African Unity - now known simply as the African Union. It's an important moment for the continent which, over the last half-century, has witnessed great change and progress - including for children.
Over the last decade, Africa has doubled the rate at which it has reduced child mortality. There are many individual stories of success, with countries such as Malawi and Rwanda, despite enormous odds, being on track to meet the 2015 United Nations' Millennium Development Goal (MDG4) of reducing child mortality by two-thirds.
However that progress is still not fast enough - despite counting for only 15% of the world's population, Africa accounts for nearly half of the world's child deaths. At the current rate of reduction Africa won't meet Millennium Development Goal 4. We need to redouble our efforts to meet our collective promises, and ensure that children growing up over the next fifty years are given the opportunity to meet their full potential.
Achieving this goal will require an increased focus on tackling the leading cause of child mortality in the region: pneumonia, diarrhoea, malaria, and complications and infections amongst newborn babies, which alone account for over 30% of child deaths in Africa. As Save the Children highlighted in our recent State of the World's Mothers report, reductions in newborn deaths in Africa have been slower than in any other region, and countries in the region score at the bottom of rankings of the riskiest places to be born.
The good news is the world has the knowledge and resources to prevent many of these deaths. Pneumonia and diarrhoea are both easily preventable and treatable diseases, but only if children have access to health workers trained and equipped to deal with them. Two thirds of babies who die in the first month of life could be saved by, amongst other measures, strengthening health systems so mothers have greater access to skilled birth attendants and investing in low-cost solutions such as injectable antibiotics to treat newborn sepsis and pneumonia.
Investing in children's health is not only right; it makes perfect economic sense too. A recent study publications suggests that for every dollar spent on key interventions for reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health, about US$ 20 in benefits could be generated/. /Malnutrition is an underlying cause of over a third of child deaths, and can also cost a country 2-3% of its national income.
Tackling child mortality is affordable and cost-effective, but it will require a renewed effort by African governments. Too few countries have met the AU commitment they made in 2001 in Abuja to spend 15% of their national budgets on health. As the Economist has pointed out, some of the fastest growing economies in the world are in Africa - if national governments take the decision to re-invest this wealth in their children, the dividends for their people and their economies could be huge.
In the months ahead, during the year-long 50th anniversary celebrations of the AU, African leaders have the opportunity to rise to this challenge; including at a special July AU summit on the Abuja Declaration. On June 8th, the UK and Brazilian governments will host an international conference on nutrition in London, where African governments will have a platform to show they're serious about tackling hunger and malnutrition, and an opportunity to secure commitments from donor partners.
Over the last 50 years Africa has been transformed. Today, its prospects are bright with booming economies, a burgeoning middle class and a youthful population. But the benefits of increasing wealth have yet to be felt by millions of Africans, who continue to die from preventable causes simply because of where they are born. 50 years ago the OAU was formed to bring African leaders together in the fight against inequality and colonialism. Today the fight against inequality continues - the inequality which means that many of the children born today in Africa will not see their fifth birthday, let alone their fiftieth. African leaders have the opportunity to display their determination to end this scandal and step up efforts in the last stretch to 2015. They - working with others - must take the bold steps needed to ensure that a child at birth is within reach of a health worker able to prevent and treat the leading causes of child mortality, and has access to newborn care, immunization and proper nutrition. We are at a tipping point- if we work together we can be the first generation in history to make sure no child's life is saved at birth.
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