by Keith Richmond
RICH African countries have been accused of “squandering their wealth” instead of using it to help prevent millions of children dying. That is the hard-hitting conclusion of a new report by the aid agency Save the Children.
The Wealth and Survival Index compares child mortality in each country with its national income per person. So it reveals which countries are making the most of what they have and which are squandering their resources.
Oil-rich Angola is named and shamed as the worst offender. Although it now has a per capita income high enough to put it in the “middle income” category of countries, more than one in four children still die before their fifth birthday.
Sierra Leone is the second-worst, with 118 more children per 1,000 dying than they should do for the amount of cash in the country. South Africa and Nigeria are also criticised.
In fact, says the agency, the findings in the report are a savage indictment of governments in sub-Saharan Africa as nearly half the worst performing countries are from the continent.
But Bangladesh, despite its poverty, is hailed as one of the few countries to significantly improve child health. Its wealth per head of population grew 23 per cent from 2000 to 2006 and the increased prosperity has been partly converted into a better deal for the poor.
During the same period, child mortality has fallen by 25 per cent. India’s per capita income rose 82 per cent in the same period and it managed to cut child mortality by 19 per cent.
Save the Children concludes that many developing countries are not using enough of their new wealth to tackle easily preventable diseases which kill millions of the most vulnerable – in particular new born babies, young children and women in childbirth.
Policy director David Mepham said: “All countries can cut child mortality if they pursue the right policies and prioritise their poorest families. Good government choices save children’s lives but bad ones are a death sentence.”
He added: “Change is possible. This report shows what can and must be done to help save children’s lives.”
About The Author
