Save the Children looks at the state of the world's mothers

Stat house
June 2002

Save the Children looks at the state of the world's mothers
Save the Children, an international relief and development organization based in the U.S., says the key to peace and long-term change may be the world's mothers. Last month—just before Mother's Day—Save the Children released its third annual report on the welfare of mothers, State of the World's Mothers 2002: Mothers & Children in War & Conflict, highlighting the crisis of survival and dignity in war-torn regions.

Charles McCormack, president of Save the Children, released the report on May 2 with these words: "This year's report documents the horrific consequences of the world's failure to protect women and children in war and conflict. But, with increased investments in women and mothers, we can provide a lifeline to their children, and at the same time help ensure a region's successful transition from war and disaster to peace and stability."

Mothers and children in war-torn regions are suffering badly due to a shift in war strategies that now result in 90 percent civilian casualties, as opposed to 65 percent in World War II and only 5 percent in 1900. While in the past, violence was directed mainly at combatants, according to the report, wars in recent decades have increasingly specifically targeted civilian populations, often with a goal of systematic eradication of a culture or race of people.

As a result of displacement from violent conflict, women and children now make up 28 million of 35 million total refugees worldwide. Women and girls in conflict regions are at greater risk for sexual assault, and children are often in danger of involuntary military servitude.

Save the Children develops a Mother's Index each year, ranking the living conditions all over the world according to indicators in health, literacy, political participation, and use of contraception, as well as indicators for the well-being of their children like infant mortality, nutritional status, primary school enrollment, and access to safe water.

The top 10 countries out of 105 on its 2002 index are Switzerland, Canada, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Australia, Netherlands, United Kingdom, Finland, Austria, and the United States (tied for 10th with Austria). The lowest 10 are Benin, Nepal, Gambia, Guinea, Ethiopia, Mali, Yemen, Guinea-Bissau, Burkina Faso, and Niger.

Five of the lowest ten are currently experiencing war or conflict. Sufficient data could not be provided to rank Afghanistan on the Mother's Index, but in children's indicators it finished last out of 156 countries. To put the gap in perspectives, a mother in Afghanistan is 1,200 times more likely to die in childbirth than a mother in Switzerland.

Other statistics from Mothers & Children in War & Conflict:

Africa:
The genocide in Rwanda left an estimated 65,000 households headed by children—90 percent of whom were girls.

In parts of eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, it is estimated that 75 percent of children born during the war have died or will die before their second birthday.

In one UNICEF survey in Angola, 66 percent of children interviewed had seen people being murdered, and 67 percent had seen people being tortured, beaten or hurt.

In Rwanda, 56 percent of children surveyed had seen children kill people; nearly 80 percent had lost immediate family members and 16 percent had been forced to hide under dead bodies. More than 60 percent of the children interviewed said they did not care whether they ever grew up.

Europe/Asia:
In Sarajevo, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, 55 percent of children had been shot at, 66 percent had been in a situation where they expected to die, and 29 percent felt "unbearable sorrow."

In Chechnya, between February and May 1995, children were 40 percent of civilian casualties.

Land mines:
It is estimated that there are now 60 to 70 million land mines active in 70 countries around the world, and that 26,000 civilians are injured or killed by land mines every year—about one-third of them are children.

Number of land mines per country: Egypt: 7.5 million Angola: 6 million Afghanistan: 4 million Vietnam: 3.5 million Algeria: 3 million Zimbabwe: 2.5 million Eritrea: 2 million Ethiopia: 2 million Morocco: 2 million Croatia: 1.2 million Republic of Korea: 1.1 million 1 million: Mozambique, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Thailand, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Sexual violence:
At least 20,000 women and girls between the ages of 7 and 65 were raped during the conflict in the former Yugoslavia in 1992 alone.

The Bosnian Ministry estimated the total number of women and girls raped during the course of the conflict as 50,000.

It is estimated that 250,000 women were exposed to sexual violence during the Rwanda genocide.

In Rwanda, researchers estimate that more than 5,000 women were impregnated through rape. Many are now raising children fathered by men who killed the woman's spouse or family members.

From 1990-2000, girls under 18 participated in armed conflicts in at least 39 countries. In 65 percent of these countries, there are documented cases of kidnapping and physical force being used to recruit girls.

Children:
Approximately 540 million children in the world—one in four—live in dangerous, unstable situations.

Of the 10 countries with the highest rates of under-five deaths, seven are in the midst of or recovering from armed conflicts: Afghanistan, Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Mozambique, Sierra Leone and Somalia.

In the 1990s, according to UNICEF, more than 1 million children became separated from their families because of war.

Of the 50 countries with the highest child mortality rates, 41 are experiencing conflict or host large refugee populations.

Infant mortality rates for sub-Saharan countries in conflict are 50 percent higher than the average for sub-Saharan African countries not in conflict.

Wars are particularly devastating to children already suffering from malnutrition, disease and poverty. The increased deprivation caused by armed conflict can raise death rates by up to 24 times in poor countries, and the youngest children (those under five) are at particular risk.—Tara Dix

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