Health and Sanitation
Under-five and infant mortality rates have dropped since 1990 but efforts must be intensified to reach 2015 targets. About 20 per cent of people living in the Pacific are yet to access improved drinking water sources, while about 30 per cent do not use sanitation facilities. Twenty per cent of Pacific children were not immunized against measles in 2005 and large sub-national disparities in vaccination coverage persist. Six out of 10 children in the Pacific are anaemic and other micronutrient deficiencies are prevalent, while low rates of exclusive breastfeeding still persist. Poor infant and young child feeding practices combined with childhood infections impair learning capacity, lower productivity, and raise infant and child morbidity and mortality. Given an estimated total fertility rate of 4 children per woman, access to emergency obstetric care remains a major challenge for rural and outer-island communities. Data from several countries show that about one third of women attending antenatal care clinics had at least one sexually transmitted infection, and women less than 25 years old had higher rates of infection.
|
