Some 19000 children under the age of 5 years die each and every day, with 5500 of these deaths caused by pneumonia and diarrhoea. These are not mere statistics. 2 million young lives are lost each year from these two eminently preventable causes of death. This situation is completely unacceptable. Despite the fact that the basic elements needed to reduce childhood deaths from pneumonia and diarrhoea are well known and of low cost, current coverage is appallingly low. We welcome the Lancet Series on Childhood Pneumonia and Diarrhoea.The Series provides the evidence base to make the case that ending preventable child deaths from pneumonia and diarrhoea within the next 12 years is ambitious but achievable and necessary. Momentum to reduce child mortality continues to build, and it is imperative for the world's children that we take advantage of this opportunity. As we approach the 1000-day mark before the Millennium Development Goal deadline, a raft of interconnected initiatives provides a platform to accelerate progress. The UN Secretary-General's widely endorsed Global Strategy for Women's and Children's Health aims to save 16 million lives through a "continuum of care" approach; a Global Vaccine Action Plan is working towards universal access to immunisation by 2020; more than 170 countries fiave signed on to A Promise Renewed, the call to action spearheaded by the Governments of Ethiopia and India, UNICEF, and USAID to end all preventable child deaths by 2035; and the UN Commission on Life-Saving Commodities for Women and Children is helping to improve access to priority medicines.
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