Released on World Health Day, the UN report, Trends in maternal mortality, shows a 40% 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.
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% 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% of the global burden of maternal deaths in 2023.
“Access to quality maternal health services is a right, not a privilege, and we all share the urgent responsibility to build well-resourced health systems that safeguard the life of every pregnant woman and newborn,” said Dr Natalia Kanem, UNFPA’s Executive Director. “By boosting supply chains, the midwifery workforce, and the disaggregated data needed to pinpoint those most at risk, we can and must end the tragedy of preventable maternal deaths and their enormous toll on families and societies.”
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 noncommunicable 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.
Note to editors
About the dataThe SDG target for maternal deaths is for a global maternal mortality ratio (MMR) of less than 70 maternal deaths per 100 000 live births by 2030. The global MMR in 2023 was estimated at 197 maternal deaths per 100 000 live births, down from 211 in 2020 and from 328 in 2000.
A maternal death is a death due to complications related to pregnancy or childbirth, occurring when a woman is pregnant, or within six weeks of the end of the pregnancy.
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