An estimated 25,685 babies will be born in Nigeria today, making up 6.5 percent of the estimated 395,072 babies born every new year day globally, UNICEF has said.
UNICEF, which made this known in a statement, said within Africa, Nigerian babies will account for almost 40 per cent of all those born in West and Central Africa, and more than 23 percent of those born in sub-Saharan Africa.
According to the statement, globally, over half of the world’s births are estimated to take place in just eight countries including India-69,944,China- 44,940, Nigeria 25,685, Pakistan -15,112, Indonesia -13,256, US – 11086, DR Congo -10,053 and Bangladesh – 8,428.
It further stated that at current life expectancy rates, a child born in Nigeria today is likely to live only to the year 2074 (55 years of age) while a child born today in Denmark is likely to live until the 22nd century.
“We can and must do more to ensure that children born in Nigeria survive their first day of life and are able to survive and thrive for many months and years to come,” said Pernille Ironside, UNICEF Nigeria’s Acting Representative.
She said in Nigeria, each year, about 262,000 babies die at birth, the world’s second highest national total, while every day, 257 babies die within their first month of life.
According to her, among these children, most died from preventable causes such as premature birth, complications during delivery and infections like sepsis and pneumonia, a violation of their basic right to survival.
“In Nigeria today, only one out of every three babies is delivered in a health centre, decreasing a newborn baby’s chance of survival. This is just one of the issues that needs to be addressed in order to improve the chances of survival of those babies born today and every day.
“This New Year Day, let’s all make a resolution to fulfill every right of every child, starting with the right to survive. We can save millions of babies if we invest in training and equipping local health workers so that every newborn is born into a safe pair of hands”, Ironside said.
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