Sierra Leone joins health leaders to strengthen commitments to address child mortality and enhance child survival

Freetown/Maputo, 23 July 2025 — Global health leaders, policymakers, philanthropists, researchers, and advocates are in Maputo for the Innovation and Action for Immunization and Child Survival Forum 2025, a high-level convening aimed at accelerating progress toward expanding access to life-saving immunization and ending preventable child deaths across sub-Saharan Africa.

Hosted by the Governments of Mozambique and Sierra Leone, and in partnership with the Government of Spain, “la Caixa” Foundation, the Gates Foundation and UNICEF, the forum comes just five years to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030 deadline.

“It is time for a bold new continental movement that redefines the way we approach child survival in Africa, for a more prosperous, peaceful, and productive Africa,” said Hon. Dr. Austin Demby, Minister of Health, at the opening ceremony of the forum. “Our next steps must be evidence-informed — high-impact interventions, including new vaccines and better vaccine regimens, integrated care, domestic investment, and equity-driven solutions. Because when we fight for every child, we shape a better future for communities and the world at large,” said the Minister.

A Defining Moment for Child Survival

While incredible progress has reduced the number of deaths of children under the age of five by half since 2000, the data today tells a story of urgency. The rate of decline in child deaths across Africa has been slower than any other region since 1990, and since 2015, has slowed even further. Today, almost five million (it is 4.3 million) children are still dying from avertable causes each year—58% of them in Sub-Saharan Africa. Preventable infectious diseases like pneumonia, malaria, diarrhea, and meningitis remain the global leading causes of death among children under five, while malnutrition accounts for 45% of all child deaths globally.

In Sierra Leone, child survival remains a key government priority, with significant progress made — under-five mortality has dropped by 53% and neonatal mortality by 38% since 2010. The Government has reaffirmed its commitment by introducing dedicated budget lines in FY2025 to co-finance all new vaccines, including the malaria vaccine

However, too many children are still dying from preventable causes. Sierra Leone continues to have one of the highest under-five mortality rates in Sub-Saharan Africa. Out-of-pocket spending remains above 50% of total health expenditure, limiting families’ access to life-saving care. With health receiving just 8% of the national budget, service delivery is further constrained by poor infrastructure, limited supplies, and critical health worker shortages.

The convening will also spotlight ongoing record levels of global funding cuts to public health programmes, including immunization. With increasing budgetary pressure within low- and middle-income countries and little room to immediately raise domestic and philanthropic funding to plug these gaps, the impact of these cuts is even more acute, especially in fragile and conflict-affected settings where children are nearly three times more likely to die before reaching age five.

Mapping a Clear Path Forward

The forum will also offer a platform for stakeholders to share best practices, present innovations with the power to accelerate progress towards ending preventable deaths of children under five and maintain and strengthen their commitments to child survival.

As part of Sierra Leone’s commitment to child survival, the country is strengthening primary health care by integrating child health, nutrition, immunization, and WASH services; expanding community-based care; improving the use of real-time district and subdistrict-level data to prevent child deaths; and fostering public-private partnerships — to ensure every child survives and thrives, no matter where they are born.

Dialogue will also center on the need to scale up innovations, diagnostic tools , and nutrition solutions to reach all children, especially the most vulnerable in conflict-afflicted and climate-impacted settings. Speakers will emphasize strengthening service delivery through integrated child health platforms, community health worker programs and digital tools, as well as building sustainable financing by mobilizing domestic resources, pooling international aid, and exploring innovative financing mechanisms. “Every child deserves the chance to grow up healthy and thrive Thanks to proven solutions and innovative care, we’ve made remarkable progress in helping more children survive their earliest, most vulnerable years. By investing in strong, integrated primary health-care systems and reaching every child with life-saving care—no matter who they are or where they live—we can save millions more young lives and build stronger families, communities, and futures," said Dr. Yasmin Ali Haque, Director of Health, UNICEF.

The convening will build on the momentum of the 2020 and 2023 Global Fora on Childhood Pneumonia to foster impactful partnerships, strengthen political will and mobilize Africa’s political and public health leaders to ensure all children are protected against the leading threats to their survival.

"Despite remarkable progress, millions of children remain unreached, lacking access to vaccines or treatments for preventable diseases. This forum is a rallying cry for Africa and the world, because the final chapter in the global fight for child survival will be written on this continent. We must protect our children with the tools we have, invest in the innovations we need, and ensure no child is left behind," said Keith Klugman, Director, Pneumonia and Pandemic Preparedness, Gates Foundation.

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About the Innovation and Action for Immunization and Child Survival Forum 2025

The Immunization and Child Survival Forum 2025 will bring together stakeholders across selected countries in sub-Saharan Africa and other regions including senior health ministry officials, development agencies, donors, academia, civil society, and the private sector. Accordingly, it will focus on new and underutilized tools to deliver progress on child survival, more effective infectious disease risk mitigation and surveillance strategies, more efficient models of service delivery, the need for robust prioritization exercises including for routine immunization systems and new vaccine introductions, and innovative child survival financing options.

For more information on the forum agenda, visit: https://www.childhealthforum2025.com/

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