Childhood Diseases Still Major Threat In Africa- World Bank Report

In spite of improving health care delivery system in Africa, more children are likely to death from childhood sicknesses, according to a new report released by the World Bank.

The report noted that “Children in sub-Saharan Africa are now less likely to die from diarrhea and pneumonia, but these illnesses are still the most common causes of childhood death and sickness in most African countries.”

Statistics from the report showed that loss of health due to diarrheal diseases dropped 34% between 1990 and 2010, lower respiratory infections (LRIs) such as pneumonia dropped by 22%, and protein-energy malnutrition was down 17%.

The report pointed out for instance that progress has been made with Malawi reducing diarrheal diseases by 65%, Burundi decreasing LRIs by 44%, and Benin Republic reducing measles by 84% during this time.

Malaria and HIV/AIDS were the leading causes of premature death and disability in 2010 for the region. But in some countries, there has been significant progress in recent years. Between 2000 and 2010, Rwanda recorded a 56% decrease in the rate of healthy years of life lost from malaria, while Botswana cut the rate of premature death and disability from HIV/AIDS by 66%.

The report also identified trends in leading risk factors that cause the most disability in the region.

Under-nutrition during childhood and household air pollution were among the leading factors behind premature death and disability, the report disclosed.

The new report titled “The Global Burden of Disease: Generating Evidence, Guiding Policy is a collaborative effort between the World Bank and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME).

Director, Health Nutrition and Population, World Bank, Mr. Timothy Evans said “The rapid shifts in disease burden place poor people in low- and middle-income countries at high risk of not having access to appropriate services and incurring payments for health care that push them deeper into poverty.

“The data in these new reports are critical inputs to the efforts of policymakers in countries towards universal health coverage that aim to improve the health of their people, communities, and economies.”

In childhood, the report also discovered that nutritional deficiencies were the leading cause for disability, even as mental and behavioral disorders accounted for the most illness during adolescence and young adulthood, while musculoskeletal disorders were the largest drivers of disability in adulthood.

In the region’s upper- and middle-income countries, non-communicable diseases emerged as a significant health threat.

From 1990 to 2010, there were substantial increases in premature mortality and disability cases as stroke (up by 31%), depression by 61%, diabetes by 88%, and ischemic heart disease (or coronary artery disease, by 37%.

The report insisted that in despite the region’s rapid economic growth, early death and illness from road injuries increased by 76% between 1990 and 2010. Health loss from interpersonal violence also climbed during this time, with particularly reference to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Lesotho.

Director IHME, Mr. Christopher Murray noted that “The health landscape in sub-Saharan Africa is changing in unexpected ways, addressing chronic disease and certain communicable diseases will continue to be important, but people in sub-Saharan Africa are dealing with a greater range of illnesses today that aren’t fatal but are definitely disabling.”