Child Poverty in Mozambique. A Situation and Trend ... - Unicef

lower than in Mozambique in 2004 (102 per 1,000 live births compared to 104 per
1,000 live births) (UNICEF 2006). In the world, the average under-five and infant
mortality rates were estimated at 79 per 1,000 live births and 54 per 1,000 live births
respectively in 2004.
The emerging trends in relation to under-five mortality reflect the trends in relation to
other indicators of children’s well-being in Mozambique, i.e. persisting geographical
and residential disparities, with the northern part of the country and rural areas
still far behind the southern parts of the country and urban areas (despite marked
improvements in rural areas), and improvement in all segments of the population but
little reduction of the gaps between the poorest and the best-off. This reflects the
prevalence and depth of child poverty at the end of the civil war.
During the period 1987-1997 and 1993-2003, the under-five mortality rate decreased
more in rural areas than urban areas, falling by about 20 per cent in rural areas (from
237 to 192) compared with a reduction of approximately 5 per cent in urban areas
(from 150 to 143). The marked improvement in rural areas can be attributed to a poor
initial base, increased security in rural areas (after the end of the civil war in 1993)
and improved access to health facilities over the reference period. Children in rural
areas remain more likely to die before reaching the age of five than those living in
urban areas. Geographical disparities also remain acute, with a child in Cabo Delgado
province being almost three times more likely to die before reaching age five than a
child in Maputo City.
Figure 3.8: Under-five mortality rate: comparison between 1987/1997 and
1993/2003
280
240
200
237
219
deaths per 1,000 live births
160
120
80
40
150
143
192
178
0
Urban Rural Total
1987/1997 1993/2003
Source: DHS 2003
All of the available evidence shows that malaria and acute respiratory infection
(ARI) are the two major immediate causes of mortality among young children
in Mozambique. AIDS is also emerging as a major killer. Malnutrition is a major
underlying cause of child mortality, as are diarrhoeal illnesses and measles. Many of
these conditions are preventable by either vaccination or other simple prophylactic
measures. Accurate and comprehensive information on the causes of death among
children, however, is scarce. The first reason for this is that most deaths among
children occur outside the health system and are therefore not recorded.
CHILDHOOD POVERTY IN MOZAMBIQUE: A SITUATION AND TRENDS ANALYSIS
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