The Sindh Minister for Health, Dr Sagheer Ahmed, has said that pneumonia is one of the major killer diseases amongst children as around 20 million up to the age of five years die around the world due to pneumonia each year. This, he said, on the eve of the first ever World Pneumonia Day being observed on November 2.
The minister said that in Pakistan also a considerable number of children die due to pneumonia and that the main reason of which is lack of awareness against this disease. He further said that the Health Department was trying hard to minimise the mortality rates of mothers and children.
An extensive programme namely Maternal, Neonatal and Child Health (MNCH) has been started which is aimed at reducing the same according to millennium Development Goals (GMDs).
Dr Sagheer said that according to estimates out of 1,000 new born 30 die in first week of life, 54 in first month of life, 78 in first year of life and 94 before the age of five years from various diseases including pneumonia. He said that pneumonia causes 13 percent death in children, which is a very high rate, and collective efforts are needed to minimise the same.
The minister further said that lack of immunisation is also causing deaths in under five years for which there was a dire need of public awareness.
He said that provincial government has initiated various development projects for improving infrastructure facilities of health sector. Dr Sagheer said that MNCH Programme is being strengthened to reduce Infant Mortality Rate (lMR) and Mother Mortality Rate (MMR).