According to a new report published by international charity Save the Children, global child mortality rates are lowest in the Nordic countries, especially in Norway, Sweden and Iceland, and highest in Niger, Sierra Leone and Yemen.
Child survival rates have improved the most in Egypt, by 68 percent since 1990, but in Iraq the situation has worsened dramatically, mbl.is reports.
In 2005, 122,000 children died in Iraq before reaching the age of five. Over 50 percent died during the first months of their lives.
According to Save the Children CEO Charles MacCormack, 10 million children die before reaching the age of five worldwide every year.
MacCormack said it is easy to significantly reduce child mortality rates with vaccinations, mosquito nets and access to wells, yet these solutions are not available to many mothers and children around the world.
Save the Children estimates that nine out of every ten mothers in sub-Saharan Africa lose a child at some point in their lives.
