Nigeria loses approximately 850,000 newborn and under-five children every year to preventable causes, including prematurity and pneumonia, according to the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Pate.
Mr Pate disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja at the joint national commemoration of the 2025 World Pneumonia Day and World Prematurity Day.
The event also marked the launch of two major policy documents: the Nigerian Child Survival Action Plan and the National Birth Defect Surveillance Guideline.
High child mortality burden
Mr Pate, who was represented by the Director of Health Promotion, John Urakpa, said Nigeria has recorded measurable progress in reducing under-five deaths but remains off track to meet global targets.
According to data from the Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS), the country’s under-five mortality rate declined from 201 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2000 to 110 deaths per 1,000 in 2023, a 45 per cent drop over two decades.
“Despite this modest progress, approximately 850,000 preventable newborn and under-five deaths are predicted to occur annually,” he said, warning that “Nigeria is not yet on track to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal target of a rate less than 25 per 1000 Live Births by 2030.”
The minister said that of these deaths, about 280,000 newborns die within the first 28 days of life due to complications from premature birth, while 162,000 deaths are linked to childhood pneumonia every year.
Pneumonia burden
Citing global estimates, Mr Pate noted that around 100 million childhood pneumonia cases occur annually, resulting in more than 808,000 related deaths.
He said low- and middle-income countries, particularly those in sub-Saharan Africa, bear the brunt of this burden.
“Nigeria and 14 other countries account for nearly three-quarters of the global childhood pneumonia mortalities,” he said.
Mr Pate described childhood pneumonia as “the forgotten killer of under-fives,” saying that while the global community had mobilised strongly against malaria, polio, tuberculosis, and HIV, pneumonia has not received comparable attention despite being a major contributor to child deaths.
“These unfavourable indices, and those of other childhood killer diseases, are still responsible for the high under-five mortality rate of 110 per 1,000 live births as reported by the 2024 NDHS,” he said.
Government efforts and progress
The minister credited the ministry’s partnership with the Every Breath Counts Coalition and the Paediatric Association of Nigeria for helping to reduce child deaths in recent years.
He said the collaboration led to the development of an In-Patient Pneumonia Treatment Algorithm, which has “strengthened the clinical skills of secondary and tertiary healthcare workers in managing severe and complicated pneumonia.”
“To a great extent, it has accounted for the drop in the under-five mortality rate from 132 per 1,000 in 2018 to 110 per 1,000 live births in 2024,” he said.
However, he noted that progress in reducing newborn deaths has been much slower.
“A retrospective assessment of our data over the past 35 years shows only a single-digit drop, from 42 per 1,000 in 1990 to 41 per 1,000 live births in 2024,” Mr Pate said.
New action plan for child survival
To accelerate progress, the ministry developed the Nigerian Child Survival Action Plan (NCSAP) after extensive consultation with key partners.
The plan aims to reduce under-five mortality to fewer than 25 deaths per 1,000 live births by 2030 through a multi-sectoral approach that integrates health, education, nutrition, and child protection.
“Addressing factors across each of these sectors is essential for fulfilling children’s developmental potential and survival,” Mr Pate said.
He explained that one of the country’s emerging challenges is birth defects, which have become an under-recognised but significant cause of neonatal and under-five mortality.
Citing government data, he said the proportion of neonatal deaths linked to birth defects rose from one per cent in 2014 to three per cent in 2019, while hospital-based studies across the six geopolitical zones show prevalence rates ranging from 2.3 to 39.9 per 1,000 live births.
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To address this, the ministry developed the National Birth Defect Surveillance Guideline (NBDSG) 2025, which provides a standardised framework for detecting and managing birth defects.
No room for complacency
Mr Pate said the new policy frameworks will strengthen Nigeria’s efforts to align with the Ending Preventable Maternal Mortality (EPMM) and Every Newborn Action Plan (ENAP) initiatives.
“There is no room for complacency. The Ministry will continue to explore innovative partnerships that will translate our efforts into effective action for child survival,” he said.
He added that achieving the plan’s goals will require “leadership, targeted human and financial resources, and a strengthened health system to ensure that the most vulnerable and poor children get the greatest benefits.”
Government reaffirm commitment
The ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Daju Kachollom, said the government is intensifying efforts to strengthen primary healthcare delivery at community levels, expand newborn and child survival interventions such as oxygen therapy, Kangaroo Mother Care, and early breastfeeding
Ms Kachollom, who was represented by the Director of the Child Health Division, Amina Mohammed, said the government is also making effort to enhance data-driven decision-making to guide equitable investments and close service delivery gaps across the country.
“I invite us all to renew our shared commitment to ensure that no child, regardless of geography or circumstance, is left behind.”
Mr Pate also acknowledged the contributions of Nigeria’s development partners, including the WHO, UNICEF, USAID, Save the Children, Nutrition International, CIHP, Miracle Feet, and the Clinton Health Access Initiative, for their continued collaboration on child health programmes.
UNICEF urges sustained collaboration
Also speaking, the Health Manager for Maternal, Newborn, Child, Adolescent Health and HIV at UNICEF Nigeria, Martin Dohlsten, said pneumonia and prematurity remain major contributors to child deaths globally and in Nigeria.
Mr Dohlsten said that while preterm birth is a major contributor to neonatal mortality, these challenges demand coordinated action and sustained advocacy.
“The themes for 2025 really underscore the collective responsibility to ensure that every Nigerian child has the opportunity to survive, but also to thrive,” he said.
He reaffirmed UNICEF’s partnership with the Health Ministry and partners to “amplify these messages, mobilise stakeholders, and strengthen interventions to safeguard the health of Nigeria’s children.”
“By commemorating these days under a unified event, we reaffirm our shared vision for a future where no child in Nigeria dies from preventable causes and every newborn gets the best possible start in life,” he added.
