Child deaths will rise this year as aid cuts reverse progress, says Gates

FILE PHOTO: A child suffering from diphtheria rests inside a ward at De Martino Public Hospital, following a diphtheria outbreak, in Mogadishu, Somalia August 13, 2025. REUTERS/Feisal Omar/File Photo

LONDON, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Around 200,000 more children will likely die before their fifth birthday this year than in 2024 as international aid cuts undermine decades of progress, the Gates Foundation said on Thursday.

The projected increase would mark the first rise in preventable child deaths this century, Gates said, from an estimated 4.6 million in 2024 to 4.8 million this year. Child deaths have roughly halved since 2000.