Why invest in early childhood?
Sônia Isoyama Venâncio
Abstract
Brazil defined health as a universal right in the 1988 Federal Constitution, by creating the Brazilian Unified Health System (SUS) and, in 1990, the full protection of children by the Statute of the Child and Adolescent (ECA) Since then, children's health has been showing significant improvement in the country. There has been a reduction in morbidity and mortality caused by immuno-preventable diseases and diarrhea, a decrease in malnutrition rates and a growing improvement in breastfeeding indicators As a result, Brazil has achieved a decrease in infant mortality (under one year) and child mortality (under five years), meeting the 2015 Millennium Development Goal (MDG) three years in advance Likewise other countries presenting child mortality reduction, aspects related to children's well-being and their full development tend to gain relevancy.