Ethiopia has the highest rate of premature births in Africa – followed by the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Africa and Ivory Coast, according to a new report by UN agencies.
The report shows that preterm births are now the leading cause of child deaths globally.
They account for more than one in five of deaths of children before their fifth birthday.
Where a baby is born often determines whether they will survive.
Of every 10 babies born globally, one is preterm – and every 40 seconds, one of those children dies.
The report, released by the World Health Organization, Unicef and the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (PMNCH), also suggests that preterm birth rates have not changed in any region in the world in the past decade. At least 152 million babies were born too soon from 2010 to 2020.
“There is now no excuse for silence. We now have in our hands the devices and the knowledge to change outcomes for our most vulnerable newborns,” said Tanzanian Dr Nahya Salim, one of the report’s co-authors.