India's Remarkable Strides in Reducing Child Mortality: UN IGME Report

The UN IGME report highlights India's significant progress in reducing child mortality and stillbirth rates. With a 70% reduction in under-five mortality since 2000, India stands as a top performer. Despite global improvements, challenges remain as millions of preventable child deaths persist, particularly in underserved areas.

In a landmark report, the United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME) has hailed India's remarkable progress in reducing childhood mortality and stillbirth rates, placing the nation among the world's top performers. According to the 2024 UN IGME report, India achieved a staggering 70% reduction in the under-five mortality rate and a 61% decline in the neonatal mortality rate between 2000 and 2023.

The report further underscores India's achievement with a 60.4% reduction in stillbirths during the same period, significantly outpacing the global average reduction of 37%. Ranked seventh globally, India's success reflects substantial efforts in addressing healthcare challenges. The UNIGME, a collaborative initiative involving UNICEF, WHO, the World Bank, and the United Nations Population Division, publishes annual data for 195 countries.

Despite these considerable gains, the UN IGME warns of a slowdown in progress, highlighting that an estimated 4.8 million children died before reaching the age of five in 2023, with 2.3 million being newborns. UNICEF attributes these preventable deaths to disparities in healthcare access, nutrition, and protection, stressing that children's survival chances vary significantly based on socio-economic factors and regional stability.

(With inputs from agencies.)