Billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates has raised fresh concern over the high child mortality rate in northern Nigeria, warning that newborns in the region face a 15% chance of dying before their fifth birthday.
Gates, who has supported health and development projects across Africa through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, stressed that the alarming statistic reflects the urgent need to improve healthcare access, maternal services, nutrition, and vaccination coverage in the region.
He noted that while progress has been made in parts of Nigeria, children in the North remain disproportionately affected by preventable diseases, poor health facilities, and malnutrition.
Health experts say the figure means that at least one in seven children in northern Nigeria does not survive to age five — a number far higher than global averages.
Bill Gates urged government leaders, development partners, and communities to prioritize child health programs, warning that failure to act could undermine Nigeria’s future growth.
