Walk for Survival in Nicaragua

• Child survival: avoid preventable child deaths.
• The event was held in La Dalia, Matagalpa.

Thursday 23th October, 2014. Andrea Núñez-Flores Rey. Managua, Nicaragua.

More than 350 children of La Dalia, Matagalpa, went to the Save the Children’s biggest annual child participation event: the Walk or Race for Survival. In total, more than 35,000 children from 65 countries joined on 15t October.

This year the theme of the race for survival is: "The most difficult places in the world to survive”, the Millennium Development Goal # 4. The aim is to draw the attention of world governments to take effective action to stop child deaths from preventable causes; also, to raise awareness on how to reduce child mortality from preventable causes in the most difficult areas to survive.

"Thanks to my mother, who took folic acid (during pregnancy), I am here and I send a message to the world: we do not want more maternal and infant deaths," said Carlos Blandon, a boy of five years during the event.

In the Walk, the authorities of the town of La Dalia, Ministry of Health (MOH) and Education participated. According to the municipal director of MOH, Juan Carlos Matute: “The main risks of mortality in children under five in the town are diarrhea and pneumonia," but "we have significantly improved health indicators, particularly for mothers and children. We do not have a maternal death for over two years.”

Mary McInerney, country director of Save the Children in Nicaragua, said that in La Dalia "there are many achievements to celebrate, and there are still many challenges because we are still suffering deaths that should not have.”

One of the challenges we have in the town, according to McInerney, is that "there are many communities where there are not trained brigade members. Furthermore, neonatal deaths are other problem. We are working with the MOH to assist newborns in their first month of live, because they require delicate care."