Reaching the every newborn national 2020 milestones: country progress, plans and moving forward

The day of birth and the first 28-days of life - the neonatal period – are the most vulnerable time for a child’s survival and health. Neonatal deaths as a share of under-five deaths declined more slowly than other under-five deaths during the Millennium Development Goal period (1990 to 2015), a period that saw a great drop in under-five mortality. Newborn deaths now account for 45 percent of under-five deaths globally, up from 40 percent in 1990. Moreover, half of all stillborn babies begin labour alive but die before birth. Beyond survival, the health of each child and adolescent of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) period begins with a healthy mother, a healthy birth and good health in the critical first days of life. Country leadership has been critical to strengthen engagement, action and partner harmonization efforts toward the implementation of the Every Newborn Action Plan which targets the reduction of the neonatal mortality rate (NMR) to 12 or fewer per 1,000 live births and stillbirths to 12 or fewer per 1,000 births in all countries by 2030. In doing so, we also improve the care provided to all mothers and their children. The Every Newborn targets are echoed in the Every Woman Every Child (EWEC) Global Strategy for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health (2015- 2030). The neonatal target is SDG Goal 3.2, and is closely linked to SDG 3.1 for ending preventable maternal mortality. As the SDG era is underway, many countries are revising their relevant plans, policies and programmes. To reach these targets to end preventable deaths [1] and ensure available, accessible and quality care, the Every Newborn National Milestones by 2020 which track the processes of country ownership and action are fundamental. A simple Tracking Tool was developed by maternal and newborn health partners to annually measure progress or lack thereof on the eight national milestones. The Every Newborn Tracking Tool was adopted by 51 countries in 2016, up significantly from 18 countries in 2015. This increase was enabled by preparatory work and follow-up after the UN interagency meetings with 37 countries in the Middle East and North Africa, and West and Central Africa in 2016. These forums provided the opportunity for country teams with high burdens of preventable mortality to understand the strategic objectives, milestones and recommended actions of the Every Newborn Action Plan, and learn about best practices and formulate their follow-up action plans. This exerc