Preventable Child Deaths Soar as Aid Cuts Threaten Global Health Goals

A staggering 4.9 million children died in 2024, with the majority of these deaths being preventable, according to a new UN report. The report warns that aid cuts could hinder the global goal of ending preventable child deaths.

Progress towards ending preventable deaths of children under five by 2030 has slowed by 60% since 2015. UN experts are calling for sustained investment in health systems to reach this target.

“No child should die from diseases that we know how to prevent,” said Unicef executive director Catherine Russell. “But we see worrying signs that progress in child survival is slowing – and at a time where we’re seeing further global budget cuts.”

The report highlights that Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia have persistently had the worst rates of child death, largely due to newborn deaths. The most common causes of death were premature birth, pneumonia, and trauma during birth. Infectious diseases, including malaria, were also a major cause.

100,000 children died directly from severe acute malnutrition – with the highest numbers in Pakistan, Somalia, and Sudan. Aid cuts are threatening to close lifesaving facilities, humanitarian workers warn.

“We are not moving far enough or fast enough and leaving 5 million [children] under the age of five vulnerable,” said Abdurahman Sharif, senior humanitarian affairs director at Save the Children.

Aid cuts have affected 6,600 health facilities, with a third forced to close. Experts warn that without sustained investment, progress in reducing child deaths will slow further, and gains could begin to reverse.