Determinants of Child Mortality in Oyo State, Nigeria

Abstract

This paper examined and identified some important determinants of infant and child mortality in Oyo state using Atiba Local Government as a case study. A total of 150 respondents were randomly selected from the entire populace in the metropolis. Logistic regression method was used to determine the factors that determine child mortality in the region. Findings reveals that out of the major determinants listed, Poverty, Malaria, Postnatal care, Health scheme and Breastfeeding are the major determinants of Child mortality in the state while HIV though catalyses child mortality was not a major determinant. It was therefore advised that policies should be revised for proper implementation and health intervention programmes that focus on mothers‟ and children‟s health should be strengthened to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) of infant and child mortality in the remaining years. In addition, parents‟ economic conditions especially the father should be improved to encourage prolonged breast feeding.

Key words: Infant mortality, child mortality, breastfeeding, Malaria, Poverty