Women: In Mozambique in 2003, 58 per cent of women in the 15-24 range had already given birth once, 18 per cent of men of this age were fathers. Only six per cent of births are attended by skilled personnel in Ethiopia. In Sierra Leone, nearly three out of ten children die before the age of five. Also, every 2,000 women die there for every 1,00,000 live births. Swaziland has the lowest life expectancy—40.8 years. In Kenya where Obama has his roots, life expectancy is only 53 years. Here, infant mortality has gone up from 64 in 1990 to 79 in 2006.

Economic status: South Africa has the largest GDP ($242 billion). Equatorial Guinea has the highest GDP per capita ($7,470), while Democratic Republic of Congo has the lowest ($ 91).

Employment: Of the 200 million Africans in the 15-24 age category, 60 per cent are unemployed. The rate is 83 per cent in Uganda, 68 per cent in Zimbabwe, and 56 per cent in Burkina Faso. 72 per cent of African youth live on less than $2 a day, 70 per cent of those in the 15-24 category, live in the rural areas. They start to work early, a quarter of children aged 5-14 are working.

Literacy: Between 2000 and 2006, Mali and Burkina Faso had the lowest adult literacy rate at 24 per cent. For the same period, only 13 per cent women in Chad and 15 per cent in Niger were literate. Kenya has a high literacy rate of 74 per cent.

... contd.