NEW DELHI: Ahead of this year's World Birth Defects Day, the WHO has urged countries, especially in the South-East Asia Region, to strengthen their health systems to prevent and respond to birth defects -- structural or functional anomalies a baby develops in the mother's body.

World Birth Defects Day is observed on March 3 to raise awareness on birth defects surveillance, prevention and management.

An estimated 8 million newborns suffer from birth defects annually worldwide. Nine out of every 10 children born with a serious birth defect are in low- and middle-income countries, said Poonam Khetrapal Singh, WHO regional director for South-East Asia.

In South-East Asia Region, birth defects are the third-most common cause of child mortality and the fourth-most common cause of neonatal mortality, accounting for 12 per cent of all neonatal deaths, she said.

She said that birth defects increased as a proportion of child mortality in the region, from 6.2 per cent to 9.2 per cent between 2010 and 2019. In 2019, birth defects contributed to at least 117,000 deaths in the region, about 22 per cent of the global total, Singh added.

She asked authorities to work to facilitate better connection between health facilities and community-based networks, platforms and organisations.

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