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Health

By every current measure ― infant, child and maternal mortality; life expectancy; access to safe drinking water; deaths from preventable or curable illnesses; prevalence of malnutrition and tropical diseases; and now, overwhelmingly, HIV/AIDS ― Sub-Saharan Africa presents the most serious health problems on earth.

 


SUB-SAHARAN
AFRICA
INDUSTRIALIZED COUNTRIES
child mortality
(per 1,000 live births)

160 deaths

 6 deaths
maternal mortality
(per 100,000 live births)

940 deaths

 13 deaths
population with
safe drinking water

55 %

 100 %
population with
improved sanitation

37 %

 100 %
life expectancy
at birth

46 years

 78 years

Dire as the picture is, a look back in time affirms that progress has been made. For example, 15 percent more Africans have access to safe water today than they did in 1990. And between 1960 and 2006, infant and child mortality rates in Africa dropped by 40 percent. Now, much of that progress stands to be undone by the epidemic of HIV/AIDS. Therefore, rural African health work is more urgent than ever before.

 

All statistics, UNICEF.

 

(Updated, Jan. 4, 2008)