UNICEF Child -death campaign in Africa failed. (BBC)
A John Hopkins university study in West Africa shows that, a UN program conducted to fight child deaths from diseases did not achieve its goal. An amount of $27 million was spent on the project transporting vaccinations, Vitamin A pills and mosquito nets to prevent malaria. The project was started in 2001 through to 2005 and took place in eleven West African countries.
The research was conducted in parts on Ghana, Mali and Benin. Researchers found out that, children often survived better outside the UN scheme. UNICEF officials said the project succeeded in raising the standards of care across the countries not just in specific areas. Lives of many children living with diarrhea, Pneumonia and malaria could have been saved if community health care workers were at hand to provide the right treatments. Figures brought in from targeted areas in Benin where UNICEF operated recorded 13 % reduction in child deaths while areas which were not covered by the program recorded a 25% reduction of child death rate. Mali also recorded such interesting figures, 24% in areas where the program was conducted and 31% elsewhere in the country.
United Nations will not accept that the program was total failure, it was meant to encourage governments to spread the medications and preventive tools across the country and while that has been done, that marked the success of the program.