According to a report released May 6 by the U.S.-based humanitarian group Save the Children more than 200 million children under age 5 do not get basic health care when they need it, and many lives could be spared by training local community health workers in remote and underserved areas.

The report, called “State of the World’s Mothers,” ranked 146 countries for how good they are for mothers and children. It found that nearly 10 million deaths occur each year from treatable ailments such as diarrhea and pneumonia, the majority of them registering in the developing countries.

The countries topping the list included Sweden, Norway, Iceland, New Zealand and Denmark, while Nigeria was last. In fact, 8 out of 10 bottom-ranked countries are in sub-Saharan Africa, where 4 out of 5 mothers are likely to lose a child in their lifetime, the report found.

Also, among 55 developing countries included in the survey, the Philippines, Peru and South Africa were the first three, Indonesia and Turkmenistan tied for fourth while Ethiopia placed on the bottom of the list followed by Laos, Yemen, Chad and Somalia.

“There is a great divide between the status of mothers' health and well-being in rich and poor countries. In rich nations, where women have access to basic health care, giving birth is usually a time of joy. But in poor countries, where there is little or no access to skilled health workers, it is typically tragic. Every woman in the 10 worst countries is likely to suffer the unbearable loss of a child in her lifetime,” Charles MacCormack, president and CEO of Save the Children said, according to the group’s Web site.

The rankings were based on data that included immunization against childhood diseases like malaria and tetanus, access to treatment for leading childhood killers such as diarrhea and pneumonia, prenatal care and other factors.

"The Philippines nearly cut its child death rate in half since 1990. The health ministry, through USAID (U.S. Agency for International Development) support, launched a number of health initiatives in 1989, including a push to increase access to oral rehydration therapy to treat diarrhea," David Oot, who heads the group's global health programs, told reporters, according to Reuters.

The report found that in the Philippines, 31 percent of children under 5 don’t receive basic health care, the smallest proportion of any country included in the survey. Peru followed (32 percent), then South Africa (34 percent) and Indonesia (35 percent).

These data contrasted those existing in Ethiopia, Somalia (82 percent), Chad (78 percent), Yemen (71 percent) and Laos (69 percent).

The report said in terms of sheer numbers, India had the most children -- 67 million -- not getting adequate health care, followed by Nigeria (16 million), Bangladesh (12 million), Ethiopia (11 million) and Pakistan (10 million).

The report concluded that use of existing, low-cost tools and knowledge could save more than 6 million of the 9.7 million children who die annually from easily preventable or curable causes.