Among the industrialized nations, the United States has the highest first-day death rate - with an estimated 11,300 newborn babies dying each year, according to a report titled "Surviving The First Day - State of the World's Mothers 2013".
Canada and Switzerland are ranked second and third in first-day death rates in the industrialized world, respectively.
Preterm birth has been blamed the number one killer of newborns in the U.S. and worldwide.
With 1 in 8 babies being born premature, the prematurity rate in the U.S. is twice that of Finland, Japan, Norway and Sweden, says the study by Save the Children - an independent organization working to deliver changes for children in 120 countries.
Worldwide, an estimated 1.05 million children die each year on their first day of life.
Seven countries in sub-Saharan Africa namely, Central African Republic, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mali, Sierra Leone and Somalia have very high first-day death rates.
The world's lowest first-day mortality rates are found in Cyprus, Estonia, Iceland, Luxembourg, Singapore and Sweden, according to the report.
Overall, this year, the report ranks Finland as the best place in the world to be a mother, thanks to its strong performance across the five indicators considered for evaluation namely, maternal health, children's well-being, educational status, economic status and political status. Democratic Republic of the Congo has been ranked as the most dangerous. The United States ranks as the 30th best place to be a mother.
Carolyn Miles, President & CEO of Save the Children said, "We've come a long way, but we won't get there without new focus on saving the youngest lives. This report presents the growing evidence that the world today has the low-cost tools to prevent millions of newborn deaths once considered inevitable."
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