Coronavirus can lead to death of 6,000 children everyday: UNICEF

UNICEF published a report on Tuesday saying an additional 6,000 children could die every day from preventable causes over the next six months as the coronavirus pandemic continues to weaken health systems and disrupt routine services.

The report from the UNchildren's agency is based on an analysis by researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, newly published in the Lancet global health journal.

Global disruption of essential maternal and child health interventions, such asfamily planning, childbirth and postnatal care, child delivery and vaccinations, could lead to an additional 1.2 million deaths of children under five in just six months.

The analysis, which looks at three modelled scenarios in low- and middle-income countries, warns that in the most optimistic scenario, where health services are reduced by about 15 per cent, there would be a 9.8per centincrease in under-five child deaths, an estimated 1,400 a day, and a jump of 8.3per centin maternal deaths.

In the worst-case scenario, where health services are reduced by about 45 per cent, there could be as much as a 44.7per centincrease in under-five child deaths and a 38.6per centincrease in maternal deaths per month.

This projected figure is in addition to the 2.5 million children who die globally every six months before their fifth birthday, and threatens to reverse nearly a decade of progress on ending preventable child deaths according to UNICEF.