Why reduce Maternal Mortality?
In most developing countries between a quarter and a third of deaths of women in their reproductive years can be attributed to pregnancy-related causes. In some rural areas of Africa and South Asia of every two women who dies, one dies from pregnancy-related causes.These are not just isolated tragedies but preventable deaths on a huge scale with a massive impact worldwide.
There are four main reasons for taking action now to reduce maternal mortality rates.
1. Maternal Mortality Perpetuates Inequality and Poverty
189 countries around the world have adopted the Millennium Development Declaration which recognises the vital role that healthy mothers and babies play in development.
For every woman who dies in childbirth there is a child who starts without a mother. This means that more babies are likely to start their lives as orphans, to become undernourished, to suffer from childhood diseases, to suffer from neglect and to not become enrolled in school.
2. Maternal Mortality Perpetuates Gender Inequality
Where women's status and autonomy is low, maternal mortality rates are high. This means that maternal mortality is an important indicator of gender inequality as well as health.
In many countries with high maternal mortality rates women and girls are disproportionately responsible for the health and well-being of their families and communities. They spend long hours every day doing "Woman's Work" such as growing crops, walking very long distances to collect water and firewood and spending long hours cooking. They are less likely to receive an education and more likely to be excluded from decision-making processes.
Where the health of women and girls is constantly on a knife-edge women are unlikely to be able to resist being socially, culturally and economically subordinated to their male counterparts.
3. Maternal Mortality Disproportionately Affects Young Girls
In developing regions, 40% of women give birth before reaching 20 years old and girls have a 20-200% higher risk of dying from pregnancy-related causes than adult women. So we really are talking about a large number of girls and young women who are dying needlessly.
4. Maternal Mortality is Invisible
Reports on the current state of global population health tend to focus on infectious diseases as the leading causes of death in developing countries. In fact, statistics suggest that the plight of hundreds of thousands of women and girls dying in childbirth every year has remained largely invisible.
According to a 2004 World Bank study, maternal mortality caused 3.84 times more deaths in the poorest quarter of the world compared to HIV and AIDS and is as high as 1 in 7 women and girls in the poorest parts of the world. Furthermore, for every woman who dies in childbirth around twenty more suffer infection and disease.
