Manila, Muharram 25, 1436, November 18, 2014, SPA -- More than 200 people drown each day in low and middle-income countries in Asia and the Pacific, accounting for 20 per cent of global drowning deaths, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Tuesday, according to dpa. In its first global report on drowning, the organization said the figure does not include deaths related to suicide, homicide or disasters such as typhoons and flooding. "These additional causes can increase the global burden of drowning by a further 50 per cent," the health body said. The report noted that drowning is the most common cause of death in children aged 5 years to 14 years in the western Pacific region, which covers 37 countries. "Drowning deaths outnumber those caused by road traffic crashes, congenital anomalies, leukaemia, lower respiratory infections, epilepsy, dengue and meningitis," it said. In 2012, more than 73,000 people drowned in the western Pacific region. Twenty per cent of those victims were children between 5 and 14 years old, the report said. Worldwide, more than 372,400 people died from drowning, including 74,212 children, it said. --SPA 14:06 LOCAL TIME 11:06 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w