[12/May/2012]

SANA'A, May 12 (Saba)- Save the Children has released its annual report on the “State of World’s Mothers”.

The report ranks 165 countries around the globe, looking at factors such as mother's health, education and economic status, as well as critical child indicators such as health and nutrition.

Based on the Mother’s Index and Country Rankings, Yemen falls in the bottom 10 most challenging places to be a mother.

This year, State of the World's Mothers focuses on nutrition as one of the key factors in determining mothers' and their children's well-being. Globally, malnutrition is one of the underlying causes of at least a fifth of maternal mortality and more than a third of child deaths. The report has a strong focus on nutrition in the first 1,000 days.

"The report shows that a mother’s breast milk - one single nutrition intervention - can save a million children’s lives each year. Policies and programs must be put in place in all countries to ensure all mothers have the support they need to choose to breastfeed if they want to. Acting now not only saves lives, but saves dollars as well", Jerry Farrell, Country Director of Save the Children in Yemen, said.

Save the Children is calling for more global action to tackle the vicious cycle of maternal and child malnutrition.

The 2012 State of the World's Mothers shows clearly that this crisis of chronic malnutrition has devastating effects on both mothers and their children.

In 2009, Save the Children launched its global campaign to redouble efforts to ensure that Millennium Development Goal 4 – a two-thirds reduction in under-five mortality – is achieved on target by 2015.

The EVERY ONE campaign aims to save the lives of 500,000 children over the next five years and creates lasting benefits for many generations to come.

The Yemen country programme launched the EVERY ONE campaign in 2010 and has developed a strategy for Child Survival, working with Ministry of Public Health and Population and local communities to improve health and nutrition across the area where it works.

Most of its health and nutrition work is based around emergency interventions. Save the Children is operating in eight governorates of Yemen with Child Rights, Child Protection, Education, WASH, Health, Nutrition and Food Security projects.