A woman still dies in the world every two minutes from complications related to pregnancy or childbirth, although maternal mortality has been reduced by a third in 20 years, the UN warned on Thursday 23 February.
“Some patients give birth alone”: the warning cry of midwives
Progress in reducing the number of these deaths was made between 2000 and 2015, but gains largely stagnated, with the situation even reversing in some cases after this period. According to a United Nations report by theWorld Health Organization (WHO), the global maternal mortality rate fell by 34.3% between 2000 and 2020.
Belarus recorded the largest decline, while Venezuela recorded the largest increase, followed by Cyprus, Greece and the United States. Globally, 287,000 women died during pregnancy or childbirth in 2020 – about one death every two minutes – compared to 446,000 in 2000. But this is only a slight drop from the 309,000 deaths recorded in 2016, when the UN Sustainable Development Goals came into effect.
The poorest and conflict zones are the most affected
The pregnancy remains “an extremely dangerous experience for millions of people around the world who do not have access to respectful and high-quality health care”lamented Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director general of the WHO, in a press release.
“These new statistics show the urgent need to ensure that every woman and girl has access to essential health services before, during and after childbirth and the possibility of fully exercising their reproductive rights”he added.
The number of these deaths has increased or stagnated in almost all regions of the world in recent years, with the exception of Australia, New Zealand and Central and South Asia.
In two of the eight UN regions – Europe/North America and Latin America/Caribbean, the maternal mortality rate even increased between 2016 and 2020, by 17% and 15% respectively. These deaths are largely concentrated in the poorest regions of the world and in countries affected by conflict.
In 2020, about 70% of all these deaths were recorded in sub-Saharan Africa, where the maternal mortality rate is “136 times higher than in Australia and New Zealand” which have the lowest numbers, said the report’s author, Dr. Jenny Cresswell, at a press conference.
A global shortage of 900,000 midwives
In nine countries facing severe humanitarian crises (Yemen, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic, Chad, Sudan and Afghanistan), the maternal mortality rate was more than double the global average .
The leading causes of these deaths are severe bleeding, high blood pressure, pregnancy-related infections, complications from unsafe abortions, and underlying conditions that may be aggravated by pregnancy (such as HIV/AIDS and malaria), all of which are preventable and treatable complications, according to the WHO.
The organization emphasizes the importance of prenatal check-ups and postnatal care and considers ” essential “ that women have control over their reproductive health, especially regarding decisions about having children and when, so that they can plan and space pregnancies.
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“We can and must do better by investing urgently in family planning and closing the global shortage of 900,000 midwives”said the executive director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Dr. Natalia Kanem, in the press release.
According to WHO’s Dr Anshu Banerjee, the statistics since 2020 – which are not yet known – look bleak due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the economic crisis.
