Sub-Saharan Africa saw considerably improved life expectancy figures in the 1970s, but now these are falling dramatically. In many African countries life expectancy has fallen by more than 10 years in the past decade. More than 12 million Africans have died of AIDS and by 2010 the continent will have 40 million orphans. More than a million people were newly infected in South and South East Asia and the Pacific in 1999. On top of this, an estimated five million people died in military conflicts in the 1990s.
Statistics concerning child heath and nutrition are particularly shocking.
The sub-Saharan infant mortality rate is 106 per 1,000 live births. Of the 130 million children born each year, about 30 million are born with impaired growth. About a third of children under five in developing countries are stunted by malnutrition, with the highest rates in East Africa and South Asia. These figures are matched by those concerning education. About 90 million children worldwide are denied any schooling at even primary level, and 232 million have no access to minimal secondary education.