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Neonatal, postneonatal, childhood, and under-5 mortality rates by country (Global), 1970-2010

Countries make dramatic gains in lowering child mortality

Watch as child mortality rates fall between 1970 and 2010 – and some rise – in 187 countries. You can see how worldwide mortality in children younger than 5 years has dropped from 11.9 million deaths in 1990 to 7.7 million deaths in 2010, a rate of decline that is faster than expected. You also can focus on particular countries and make comparisons and examine the changing relationship between child mortality and other socioeconomic and demographic variables, such as GDP and the number of live births. Data are presented as bubbles, columns, or lines.  
 
For more ideas how to explore go to the How to Visualize tab. 
 

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Data Visualization

How to ExploreData StoriesTerms Defined
  • Hit play and watch changes over time.
  • Next to the x-axis and y-axis labels, you can click the arrow to choose different indicators to display in the graph and/or change to linear vs. logarithmic scale.
  • Select specific countries to watch; you can turn 'Trails' on or off to see the complete pattern of a country over time.
  • Click and drag a rectangle within the graph plot to zoom in on that area; this may be especially helpful when trying to view specific country trends.
  • Change the graph from a bubble view to a line chart using the tab in the top right corner of the visualization.
  • Watch the global decline in neonatal mortality during the past 40 years. Choose “Neonatal Mortality (Rate)” on the left and “Births” on the bottom to show the relationship between all births and neonatal deaths.  Select “Population” under the “Size” menu to show the difference in population sizes by the size of the circles. Hit the play button at the bottom left. In 1970, big countries such as India, Pakistan, and Ethiopia, as well as small countries such as North Korea, Afghanistan, and Nepal had neonatal mortality rates higher than 60, meaning that more than 60 children out of every 1,000 would likely die before reaching 1 month of age. By 2010, though, no country had a rate that high, and only Afghanistan had a rate higher than 50.
     
  • See how only four countries have had an increase in child mortality since 1990, the period critical for policymakers gauging the progress of countries toward the Millennium Development Goal 4 of reducing child deaths by 66% between 1990 and 2015. Select “Under 5 Mortality (5q0) (Rate) on the left. Select “GDP (USD)” on the bottom to see how countries have grown economically over time. Select “Births” under the “Size” menu to show the difference in number of births by the size of the circles. In the country list, check the boxes for Antigua and Barbuda, Equatorial Guinea, Lesotho, and Swaziland. Make sure the “Trails” box is unchecked. Hit the play button at the bottom left and you will see how nearly every country falls, meaning that they have lowered their child mortality rate. But starting in 1990, you will these four countries rise back up.
 
  • Births: Absolute number of live births. Estimates from United Nations World Population Prospect 2009/Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation
  • Childhood Deaths (Absolute): Absolute number of deaths, ages 1-5
  • Childhood Mortality (4q1) (Rate): Probability of death between ages 1 and 5, expressed as deaths per 1,000
  • GBD Region: Global Burden of Disease region classified by epidemiological profile and geography
  • GDP (PPP): Gross Domestic Product per capita expressed in PPP (purchasing power parity) (1990 US$)
  • GDP (USD): Gross Domestic Product per capita expressed as constant US$ (2005 base year)
  • Maternal Mortality Ratio: Estimates from Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation
  • Neonatal Deaths (Absolute): Absolute number of deaths, Neonatal
  • Neonatal Mortality (Rate): Probability of death from birth to age 1 month, expressed as deaths per 1,000
  • Population: Estimates from United Nations World Population Prospect 2009
  • Postneonatal Deaths (Absolute): Absolute number of deaths, Post Neonatal
  • Postneonatal Mortality (Rate): Probability of death between age 1 month and age 1 year, expressed as deaths per 1,000
  • Under 5 Deaths (Absolute): Absolute number of deaths, from birth to age 5
  • Under 5 Mortality (5q0) (Rate): Probability of death from birth to age 5, expressed as deaths per 1,000 live births

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Related Publications & Presentations

Research Articles

Rajaratnam JK, Marcus JR, Flaxman AD, Wang H, Levin-Rector A, Dwyer L, Costa M, Lopez AD, Murray CJL. Neonatal, postneonatal, childhood, and under-5 mortality for 187 countries, 1970–2010: a systematic analysis of progress towards Millennium Development Goal 4. The Lancet. 2010 May 24; 375:1988–2008.

Read the Article
View the Publication Summary and Data

Related News & Events

News Releases
Unexpected decline in newborn mortality drives child deaths below 8 million
May 24, 2010

Worldwide mortality in children younger than 5 years has dropped from 11.9 million deaths in 1990 to 7.7 million deaths in 2010, a rate of decline that is faster than expected, according to new research from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington.

 
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