In the developing world, many kids are going to school sick, or are too sick to go to school at all. And they don’t have colds or the flu: they have serious illnesses that could threaten their lives.

Keeping people healthy means making sure they have the knowledge to prevent disease, the option to see a doctor and access to life-saving medicine when they need it—this way, children get the head-start they need to do well.

But lots of people around the world don’t have the opportunity to be healthy. Half the children who die before the age of five are killed by one of five diseases: HIV/AIDS, diarrhea, malaria, measles and pneumonia. These are all preventable and treatable. Mothers also need better care, since almost half a million women die each year during childbirth.

All of this is the harsh reality for millions of people living in developing countries. HIV/AIDS is decimating entire populations, millions of orphans are left to care for younger siblings and finding money to treat diseases, both simple and complex, is often just a dream.

The Facts Paint the Picture:

• Every year, more than 500,000 women die in pregnancy and childbirth—this is almost one death every minute of every day.
• Every day, 8,000 people die of AIDS-related conditions. This is equal to about three million deaths per year.
• Sub-Saharan Africa has just over 10 percent of the world’s population, but it is home to 64 percent of the global total of people living with HIV and 90 percent of children (under 15) living with the virus.
• Malaria acutely infects almost 300 million people each year and kills more than one million annually, with almost 90 percent of all cases in sub-Saharan Africa.

Health & the Millennium Development Goals

The theme of health includes two specific Millennium Development Goals. These are:

Goal 5: Improve Maternal Health

What We Need To Do:

Improve maternal health by reducing the maternal mortality rate by three-quarters between 1990 and 2015.

The Challenge:

• Complications during pregnancy and childbirth are the leading cause of death and disability among women of reproductive age in developing countries.
• An estimated 529,000 women died from complications of pregnancy and childbirth in 2000; for every woman who died, 20 more were seriously injured or disabled.

Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Other Diseases

What We Need To Do:

Stop and reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS, malaria and other major diseases, including tuberculosis.

The Challenge:

• At the end of 2006, 39.5 million people were living with HIV, the highest number of people on record.
• Malaria kills more than one million people each year, with almost 90 percent of all cases in sub-Saharan Africa.