Explaining Neonatal, Perinatal and Childhood Mortality Risks in Nigeria: Does Child’s Risk Status at Birth Matter?

Elhakim A. Ibrahim, University of Texas at San Antonio
Sunday Adedini, University of the Witwatersrand

Nigeria contributes over ten percent of global burden of preventable deaths among under-five children. Drawing on 2013 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey kids-recode data of 31,260 live births, this study investigates the nexus between child’s risk status at birth dimensions- determined by maternal age at birth, preceding birth interval and birth order- and risks of dying during neonatal, postneonatal and childhood phases. Results from Cox's proportional hazards models employed revealed that children in avoidable high-risk group exhibit consistently higher adjusted mortality risks in all the three phases [33-56%, p<0.001], while those in unavoidable risk group had the highest risks of dying but only during the neonatal period [56-71%, p<0.001] than those in referenced non-high-risk category. The findings suggest that promoting safe birth practices among women and strengthening primary healthcare system to provide life-saving care for children with elevated risks of dying will increase survival chances among under-five in Nigeria.