Cuba sees lowest ever child mortality rates last year

Via Xinhua.

HAVANA, Jan. 2 (Xinhua) — Child mortality rates in Cuba dropped to 4.7 out of every 1,000 newborns in 2008, the lowest in history, the Health Ministry said Friday.

The figure places Cuba among the nations in the world which have the lowest death rates for children under one year of age.

According to the ministry, there were 122,556 births in 2008, 10,184 more than in 2007 when the mortality rate was of 5.3 out of every 1,000 newborns.

A total of 579 newborn babies died in Cuba last year, due mainly to perinatal causes, congenital anomalies and infections.