NEWS RELEASE:NEW WHO/UNICEF ACTION PLAN TO TACKLE PNEUMONIA

US$ 39 billion needed to prevent and control world s leading killer of young children2 November 2009 Geneva/New York -- A comprehensive act ion plan th at can save up to 5.3 million childrenfrom dying of pn eumoni a by 20 15 is being launched today by the WHO and United Natio ns Children.-s Fund(UNICEF).Pneum onia is the biggest cause ofchild dea ths in the world, killing 1.8 million children under five years ofage everyyear, more than 98% of which occur in 68 developing countries . In spite of its hu ge toll, relatively few resources arededicated to tackling th is child killer.