International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

A drop in child mortality rates in Niger has been welcomed by the African nation's government.

According to new statistics published by The Lancet, there were 226 deaths per 1,000 live births in 1998. However, this had dropped to 128 per 1,000 live births by 2009.

Niger's government believes this should be a "source of enormous pride", as considerable improvements have been made over the last 22 years.

Indeed, health minister Soumana Sanda said the country had the world's highest child mortality rate in 1990, whereas the state of affairs is very different today.

"Our success provides evidence that it is possible to reduce child mortality substantially in an incredibly hard socio-economic context," he commented.

According to figures from the World Health Organization, the chances of a child dying before the age of five are 160 out of every 1,000 live births.

The typical life expectancy for a male in Niger is 57, while a typical woman lives to the age of 58.

Posted by Carla Mackenzie