Charles Anthony L.

Dela Cruz

BSED 2-3

The collection of high-quality country-level indicators related to child development must be

improved regularly. Many variables lacked data, particularly in the area of mother-child contact. A larger
effort should be made to establish or enhance data collecting systems if governments are dedicated to
improving child development outcomes.

Nutrition

Low birth weight was common in Tanzania, Rwanda, Cape Verde, and Kenya, with rates
comparable to the European average of 6.9%. For cohorts of children developing in line with WHO
growth criteria, the under-five stunting prevalence was higher than anticipated at 16–28% even for the
best-performing nations. Stunting has declined because of a variety of factors, including increased
access to clean water and sanitation, as well as continuous investments in early childhood development.
Fortification legislation-enforced nations bear the worst burden of anemia, both severe and complete.
As a result, there were no clear winners or losers, indicating that every nation confronts different
problems. Exclusive breastfeeding, which was shown to be the most protective nutrition component,
had a wide range of coverage, ranging from 1 percent in Djibouti to 84.9 percent in Rwanda.

Environment

Africa had the highest gasoline lead level in the 1990s. After Sudan became the first nation in
the region to use unleaded gas in 2000, other countries in the region followed suit. With the second-
highest frequency of children under the age of five sleeping under ITNs and the second-lowest malaria
burden among children aged 6–59 months, Tanzania ranked well on both metrics. The greatest regional
risk factor is HIV infection. Adult HIV prevalence was greatest in southern African countries. We still
couldn't tell how many of the youngsters were HIV positive. Developing treatments requires a thorough
understanding of the variables that contribute to a population's resilience.

Maternal-Child Interactions

While maternal depression is common across the world, little is known about it in Sub-Saharan
Africa. Studies based on non-nationally representative samples show that the burden is substantial,
although it varies from country to country. Because of the scarcity of health care resources, prenatal and
postpartum psychological assistance is likely to be uncommon. Depression's negative impact on a child's
development may be minimized if it is identified early on in pregnancy and after childbirth.
Conclusion

The study focuses on risk variables that can be modified by household, mother and child-level
interventions on modifiable risk factors for cardiovascular disease. The use of unleaded gasoline, salt
iodization, and iron fortification of cereals are all efforts that need national governmental involvement.
As a result, we didn't examine any programs that address issues like poverty or macro-system risk, such
as racial violence. The Lancet series on maternal and child undernutrition was heavily used for
estimating the effect of interventions. Stunting, malaria, and HIV infection are common in Africa, making
it a high-risk region for poor child development. The absence of data on many variables, particularly
those relating to mother-child contact, is a significant problem in the development agenda.