A child's risk of dying is highest in the first month of life.
In the first month of life safe childbirth and effective neonatal care are essential. Preterm birth, birth asphyxia and infections cause most newborn deaths. Once children have reached one month of age, and up until the age of five years, the main causes of loss of life are pneumonia, diarrhoea, and malaria. Malnutrition contributes to more than one-third of all child deaths.