Kenya has made tremendous progress in reducing child mortality in the last 10 years, data from the Ministry of Health has shown.
There has been a 30 per cent decline in the number of children who die before their fifth birthday.
This has been attributed to increased uptake of ORS and Zinc for the management of diarrhoea in children under five years and improved exclusive breastfeeding practices.
Introduction of new childhood vaccines like pneumococcal and rotavirus, use of insecticide-treated mosquito nets and the scale-up of skilled birth attendants are other factors.
“Although vaccines and other preventative efforts are decreasing the burden of the disease, much more work is still required,” Health CS Susan Wafula said.
“Those living in poor communities are at the highest risk of pneumonia. Every child, regardless of where they are born, deserves access to lifesaving vaccines and medicines.”
Head of the neonatal and child health division at the ministry Caroline Mwangi says pneumonia is the number one killer of children after the neonatal period but suffers in terms of visibility, financial investments, and research funding.
This has forced the ministry to introduce and scale up interventions that have a long-term impact on mitigating these causes in line with the frameworks of pneumonia interventions of protect, prevent and treat.
Unicef country representative Jeanne Lokenga said there is no excuse why some children are unable to access life-saving medications saying reducing pneumonia is dependent on the success of universal healthcare.
The current infant mortality rate for Kenya is 30 deaths per 1,000 live births, a 3.47 per cent decline from 2021.
The infant mortality rate for Kenya in 2021 was 32.9 deaths per 1,000 live births, a 3.36 per cent decline from 2020.