UN General Assembly
1997

areas of the country. In this regard, we are happy to note that international agencies such as the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), have praised the efforts of the Government. In its report entitled The Progress of Nations 1997, UNICEF illustrated the accomplishments achieved by the Sultanate of Oman in child protection and the country’s commitment to ensuring the rights of the child through its accession in 1996 to the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Sultanate of Oman is the number-one country in the world in terms of reducing infant under-five mortality by 74 per cent between 1980 and 1995. The report notes: “The proportion of children who reach their fifth birthday is one of the most fundamental indicators of a country’s concern for its people. Child survival statistics are a poignant indicator of the priority given to the services that help a child to flourish: adequate supplies of nutritious food, the availability of high-quality health care and easy access to safe water and sanitation facilities, as well 4 as the family’s overall economic condition and the