By Waihiga K Muturi, Rtn
The heartbreaking story of young Brylejones Baraka, a four-year-old Kenyan boy who died in 2024 after a painful medical journey, is a reminder of a continent-wide crisis: preventable child deaths.
His mother, Mama Baraka, shared their story on social media, her uploads on TikTok touching over half a million viewers with a candid, emotional account of a life lost too soon.
“Baby Baraka was a post-liver trans plant, he was on immunosuppressive medication. He had sepsis, acute infection, and after being admitted for three weeks, there was no change,” said his mother in July 2024 post
Baraka’s death, revealed through a post-mortem to involve malignant tumours and widespread organ damage, reflects a broader pattern in sub-Saharan Africa.
A new study by the Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) Network, in collaboration with KEMRI and supported by the Gates Foundation, has revealed that 86.9 percent of child deaths among those aged 1 to 59 months are due to infections, over 82 percent of them preventable. They also noted that the majority of childhood deaths in high-mortality settings are linked to preventable infectious diseases.
Dr. Aura Nzinga, who treats inpatients and outpatients between 0-10 years, says the loss of a child is mentally challenging and exhausting, especially if they die of preventable causes
Dr. Victor Akelo, Senior Director at CHAMPS and KEMRI, explains that the findings were made possible through Minimally Invasive Tissue Sampling (MITS), a technique that uses needles to collect tissue samples post-mortem, offering clearer insight into causes of death while maintaining dignity for grieving families.
The study covered 632 post-neonatal deaths across Kenya, other parts of sub-Saharan Africa, and South Asia. The most common underlying causes were malnutrition, malaria, HIV, congenital conditions, respiratory infections, and diarrhoea. Alarmingly, many infections, especially those caused by Klebsiella pneumoniae and Acinetobacter baumannii, were found to be hospital-acquired, exposing the dire need for stronger infection prevention controls in healthcare facilities.
Kenya has made strides in malaria control through treated bed nets, chemoprophylaxis for pregnant women, and vaccine rollouts. However, in high-burden areas like Siaya, malaria still contributes significantly to child mortality.
However, Dr. Aura encounters these cases daily. He emphasizes the emotional toll and the importance of systemic reviews, counselling, and continuous improvement in care delivery.
With research-backed solutions at hand, experts now call for urgent policy implementation and resource mobilization. The findings offer a roadmap, but without committed action, children like Baraka will continue to be lost to preventable causes.
