In every 1,000 children aged between five and 14 in the country, there is a probability that eight girls and 10 boys will die, the latest UN report shows.
The estimates by the United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation were released by the World Health Organisation and Unicef this week.
They show that 12,000 children aged between the ages of five and 14 might have died in 2021.
The ‘Levels and Trends in Child Mortality Report 2022 further shows that 17,000 deaths might have occurred in the adolescents and youth aged 15 and 24 in 2021 compared to 11,000 in 1990.
The report further notes that in every 1,000 adolescents and youth aged between 15 and 24 in the country, there is a probability that 12 girls and 19 boys will die.
Overall, it is estimated that 2.1 million children, adolescents and youth aged five to 24 died that same year globally, with more than half of the deaths occurring among among adolescents and youth aged 15 to 24.
“These losses are not only unacceptable on a personal level, but also represent an unnecessary setback to development,” the report says.
“Focused measures are needed to ensure the survival of the most vulnerable children, adolescents and youth, to end preventable deaths and to deliver the promise of a healthy adulthood,” it adds.
The report attributed this to factors such as conflicts and emergencies such as the Covid-19 pandemic.
The report notes that even though the available data shows a very small direct impact of Covid-19 on child and youth mortality, indirect mortality has been linked to exhausted health care systems and interruptions in services such as vaccination and nutrition.
It calls for increased investment in these ages to reduce the number of deaths and ensure young people are given a chance for a healthy adulthood.
The report analysed data from 15 low and middle-income countries including Kenya.
