WHO calls for efforts to prevent newborn deaths in South East Asia

The World Health Organization and others, including Unicef, the World Bank, and UNAIDS, have pledged their support to help countries in South East Asia to gain access to lifesaving interventions to reduce newborn mortality. A technical advisory group of 12 regional and global experts has been set up.

Some 894 000 newborns (<28 days old) died in the region in 2015, amounting to 7400 deaths a day. Of these, 696 000 newborn deaths were in India, which recorded the highest neonatal mortality rate (28 deaths per 1000 live …