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STORY: WHO / MATERNAL MORTALITY
TRT: 02:20
SOURCE: WHO
RESTRICTIONS: PLEASE CREDIT WHO ON SCREEN
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 31 MARCH 2025, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Close up, WHO sign, WHO headquarters
2. Wide shot, WHO staff, camera operator
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Jenny Cresswell, Sexual and Reproductive Health Scientist, World Health Organization (WHO):
“The key findings of the report, first of all, the good news. Maternal mortality has declined 40 percent since the year 2000. This is due to improvements in skilled birth attendance and increases in universal health coverage, which means that more women are accessing good quality, timely services when they need them.”
4. Med shot, WHO staff, camera operator
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Jenny Cresswell, Sexual and Reproductive Health Scientist, World Health Organization (WHO):
“However, concerns remain. Still, far too many women are dying, nearly 700 every single day, and nearly all of these maternal deaths are due to preventable causes. There are substantial inequalities between different countries and regions. Nearly nine out of ten maternal deaths take place in lower middle-income countries.”
6. Med shot, WHO staff, camera operator
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Jenny Cresswell, Sexual and Reproductive Health Scientist, World Health Organization (WHO):
“There is a widening gap between countries which are experiencing long term threats to the effectiveness of their health systems, particularly those countries which are affected by conflict or institutional fragility. And the report shows that three out of five maternal deaths are taking place in countries affected either by conflict or by long term fragility.”
8. Close up, camera
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Jenny Cresswell, Sexual and Reproductive Health Scientist, World Health Organization (WHO):
“Also, we are concerned about the sudden financial disruptions which are being reported in many settings. These can have an impact on women receiving the services they need in a timely manner. When a woman is about to deliver, she needs to access high quality care, right then, she can't afford to wait.”
10. Med shot, WHO scientist
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Jenny Cresswell, Sexual and Reproductive Health Scientist, World Health Organization (WHO):
“Nearly every maternal death is preventable. We know what we need to do to prevent them, and that's what makes maternal mortality such a tragedy.”
12. Close up, camera
13. SOUNDBITE (English) Jenny Cresswell, Sexual and Reproductive Health Scientist, World Health Organization (WHO):
“And care by skilled health professionals before, during and after delivery, it can help save women's lives and that of their newborn. Access to comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services as part of universal health coverage can also help save many lives.”
14. Med shot, WHO scientist
15. SOUNDBITE (English) Jenny Cresswell, Sexual and Reproductive Health Scientist, World Health Organization (WHO):
“We know that it's possible to make progress. We've seen that, and many countries have demonstrated that, we can't afford to go back.”
16. Close up, cameraman
Women today are more likely than ever to survive pregnancy and childbirth according to a new report released today (7 Apr), but UN agencies highlight the threat of major backsliding as unprecedented aid cuts take effect around the world.
Released on World Health Day, the report ‘Trends in maternal mortality,’ was produced by the World Health Organization (WHO) on behalf of the United Nations Maternal Mortality Estimation Inter-Agency Group comprising WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, the World Bank Group and the Population Division of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs.
The report shows a 40 percent global decline in maternal deaths between 2000 and 2023 – largely due to improved access to essential health services.
Still, the report reveals that the pace of improvement has slowed significantly since 2016, and that an estimated 260.000 women died in 2023 as a result of complications from pregnancy or childbirth - roughly equivalent to one maternal death every two minutes.
The report comes as humanitarian funding cuts are having severe impacts on essential health care in many parts of the world, forcing countries to roll back vital services for maternal, newborn and child health.
These cuts have led to facility closures and loss of health workers, while also disrupting supply chains for lifesaving supplies and medicines such as treatments for haemorrhage, pre-eclampsia and malaria – all leading causes of maternal deaths.
Without urgent action, the agencies warn that pregnant women in multiple countries will face severe repercussions - particularly those in humanitarian settings where maternal deaths are already alarmingly high.
The report also provides the first global account of the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on maternal survival.
In 2021, an estimated 40 000 more women died due to pregnancy or childbirth - increasing to 322 000 from 282 000 the previous year.
This upsurge was linked not only to direct complications caused by COVID-19, but also widespread interruptions to maternity services.
This highlights the importance of ensuring such care during pandemics and other emergencies, noting that pregnant women need reliable access to routine services and checks as well as round-the-clock urgent care.
The report highlights persistent inequalities between regions and countries, as well as uneven progress.
With maternal mortality declining by around 40 percent between 2000 and 2023, sub-Saharan Africa achieved significant gains – and was one of just three UN regions alongside Australia and New Zealand, and Central and Southern Asia, to see significant drops after 2015.
However, confronting high rates of poverty and multiple conflicts, the sub-Saharan Africa region still counted for approximately 70 percent of the global burden of maternal deaths in 2023.
Pregnant women living in humanitarian emergencies face some of the highest risks globally, according to the report.
Nearly two-thirds of global maternal deaths now occur in countries affected by fragility or conflict.
For women in these settings, the risks are staggering: a 15-year-old girl faces a 1 in 51 risk of dying from a maternal cause at some point over her lifetime compared to 1 in 593 in more stable countries.
The highest risks are in Chad and the Central African Republic (1 in 24), followed by Nigeria (1 in 25), Somalia (1 in 30), and Afghanistan (1 in 40).
Beyond ensuring critical services during pregnancy, childbirth and the postnatal period, the report notes the importance of efforts to enhance women’s overall health by improving access to family planning services, as well as preventing underlying health conditions like anaemias, malaria and oncommunicable diseases that increase risks.
It will also be critical to ensure girls stay in school and that women and girls have the knowledge and resources to protect their health.
Urgent investment is needed to prevent maternal deaths.
The world is currently off-track to meet the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal target for maternal survival.
Globally, the maternal mortality ratio would need to fall by around 15 percent each year to meet the 2030 target – significantly increasing from current annual rates of decline of around 1.5 percent.
