However, six low-income African countries, Burkina Faso, Eritrea, Madagascar, Malawi, Uganda and the United Republic of Tanzania, have made significant progress in reducing deaths among newborn babies, according to a new report published on Tuesday.

The report, Opportunities for Africa's Newborns, brings together new data and analysis from a team of 60 authors and nine international organizations from the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health, (PMNCH).

The Partnership represents developing and donor countries, non-governmental agencies, foundations and multi-lateral organizations, including the World Health Organization.

"Good news does come out of Africa," said Dr Joy Lawn, Co-Editor of the report, who works in Africa for Saving Newborn Lives/Save the Children-US.

"Whilst the survival of the African child has shown almost no improvement since the 1980s, the fact that during 2006 several large African countries have reported a dramatic reduction in the risk of child deaths gives us new hope of more rapid progress to save Africa's children," according to a statement issued in Accra on Wednesday by the UN Information Centre.

It said although no measurable progress had been made in reducing newborn mortality rates for babies during the first month of life in Africa at regional level, a turnaround had been seen in the six countries highlighted in the report, with an average reduction of 29 per cent in over the last 10 years.

"Across the six countries, the reduction ranges from 20 per cent in Tanzania and Malawi to 39 per cent in Burkina Faso and 47 per cent in Eritrea.

"Up to half a million African babies die on the day they are born - most at home and uncounted."

According to the report, Liberia has the world's highest newborn mortality rate at 66 deaths per 1,000 births compared to less than two deaths per 1,000 births in Japan and six deaths per 1,000 births in Latvia.

Half of Africa's 1.16 million newborn deaths occur in just five countries - Nigeria, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Uganda. Nigeria alone has over 255,000 newborn deaths each year.
"The health of newborn babies has fallen between the cracks - Africa's un-named, and uncounted, lost children," said Dr Francisco Songane, Director of the Partnership.

"We must count newborn deaths and make them count, instead of accepting these deaths as inevitable. The progress of these six African countries demonstrates that even the world's poorest countries can look after their newborns, their most vulnerable citizens. They have shown the way-we must seize the opportunity."

The President of the Pan-African Parliament, Ms Gertrude Mongella, is spearheading action in maternal, newborn and child health through the African Union and the Pan African Parliament in Johannesburg.
"Reaching every woman, baby and child in Africa with essential care will depend on us, the users of this publication. We all have a role to play as governments to lead, as policymakers to guarantee essential interventions and equity, as partners and donors to support programmes," she said.

The authors warn that opportunities to save newborn lives within existing programmes are often missed: For example two-thirds of women in Africa attend antenatal care yet only 10 per cent receive preventive treatment for malaria and a mere one per cent of mothers with HIV receive the recommended treatment to prevent mother to child transmission of HIV/AIDS.

The report found that two-thirds of newborn deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa -up to 800,000 babies a year -could be saved if 90 per cent of women and babies received feasible, low-cost health interventions.
These include immunizing women against tetanus; providing a skilled attendant at birth; treating newborn infections promptly and educating mothers about hygiene; warmth and breastfeeding for infants.

Saving these lives would take only an estimated at 1.39 dollars per capita-or one billion dollars per year. According to the report, this cost would benefit others, in particular the one million stillborns and 250,000 mothers, who also die each year.

GNA