Maternal & Child Health

Each year, an estimated 358,000 women die from complications during pregnancy or childbirth and more than 7 million children die before their fifth birthdays. Most of these deaths are entirely preventable and occur in developing countries. Too many mothers lose their lives during or immediately after childbirth to excessive bleeding, high blood pressure, prolonged and obstructed labor, or infections. Many more infants and children die needlessly from preterm birth, severe infections, asphyxia, pneumonia, diarrhea, malaria, and malnutrition.

Maternal, neonatal, and under-five mortality rates are highest in sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia. In contrast, such mortality rates are low or nonexistent in industrialized nations. In fact, children born in low-income countries are nearly 18 times more likely to die before age five than children born in high-income countries.

Improving maternal health and reducing child mortality worldwide are among the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) set forth in 2000. The MDGs form a blueprint for the world’s nations to reverse poverty, hunger, and disease affecting billions of people around the world. Specific targets to be achieved by 2015 include:

  • reducing the maternal mortality ratio by three-quarters;
  • achieving universal access to reproductive health; and
  • reducing the under-five mortality rate by two-thirds.

Some progress has been made—for example, maternal deaths worldwide have dropped by one third since 1990. However, far more attention and action is needed to meet the MDGs and to raise maternal and child health in low-resource countries to a level equitable with the rest of the world.

Many evidence-based solutions to the maternal and child health challenges facing low-income countries are within reach. To thrive, infants and children need access to:

  • vaccination
  • adequate nutrition
  • exclusive breastfeeding
  • safe drinking water and food
  • adequate sanitation and hygiene
  • antibiotics
  • skilled health care providers

Mothers require:

  • voluntary family planning services to delay, space, or limit pregnancies
  • antenatal care in pregnancy
  • skilled care during childbirth
  • quality postpartum care and support
  • Publications & Resources
    April 02, 2012

    Postpartum Family Planning Toolkit

    The first year postpartum is a time of great family planning need, but also a time when few services are accessible to women.

  • Publications & Resources
    April 02, 2012

    Postpartum Hemorrhage Toolkit

    The leading cause of maternal mortality worldwide, postpartum hemorrhage is responsible for approximately one-quarter of the half-million maternal dea

  • Publications & Resources
    April 02, 2012

    Pre-Eclampsia/Eclampsia Toolkit

    As maternal mortality ratios decline globally, donors, governments, and providers are focusing more attention on two leading causes of poor maternal o

  • Publications & Resources
    April 02, 2012

    Pre-Service Education Toolkit

    There is a growing need for collective access to appropriate resources and guidance for pre-service education programs to prepare the health care work

  • Blog post
    March 09, 2012

    "A New Century: African Women, Health and the Future of Development" In Honor of International Women’s Day

    A woman’s health is important to not only herself, but to her children and community. Women’s health is necessary for overall prosperity. In Africa the statistics are troubling. One in every twenty six women dies from a complication related to pregnancy and childbirth and women of childbearing age are the demographic group hardest-hit by the HIV/AIDS crisis. In order for measurable progress to be achieved in women’s health, discussions, pledges, and strategies need to become concrete actions.

    IWD Event 1

    In honor of International Women's Day, Africare held a meeting on the state of women’s health in Africa at the National Press Club. The event was co-hosted by the United Nations Foundation and  Global Health and Diplomacy.  In the welcome address, Rep. Karen Bass stated that as as a member of the foreign affairs committee in Congress, she would ensure that discourse surrounding women’s health in Africa would be one of her top priorities.

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  • Blog post
    March 07, 2012

    eHealth in the Field: Inspiring Women and Applied Technology

    This past weekend the Bangladesh Knowledge Management Initiative (BKMI) team went to rural Gaibandha in northern Bangladesh. We observed two eHealth programs in action, hoping to learn from their experiences and explore ways to collaborate. 

    One program that we visited was the Mobile Alliance for Maternal Action (MAMA) initiative.  This project provides informational SMS (text) and voice messages in Bangla (the primary language of Bangladesh) to pregnant women and new moms, as well as their husbands, mothers-in-law, and other decision makers in the family.  They receive one to two messages a week that are tailored to the week of pregnancy or the age of the child.  Messages remind moms and their families about what to expect during pregnancy, warning signs of complications, preparation for childbirth including where to go to deliver, healthy nutrition for mom and baby, breastfeeding, and other issues.  The program sends regular health information to families who may have limited access to clinics and providers.  Moms that we visited were able to recall messages they had heard and tell us about the resulting changes they made in their diet to improve nutrition.

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  • Blog post
    March 07, 2012

    What Does it Mean to be a Woman in 2012?

    In this blog series, I try to shine light on positive experiences and progress towards equality for women. But these “bright spots” don’t change the overall picture—that empowering women is still an uphill struggle. As International Women’s Day approaches again this year on March 8th, I am constantly reminded of the painful, oppressive, and unjust practices that continue to afflict women and girls worldwide..

    International Women's Day

    If it were somehow possible to average out the experiences of all women into a “typical woman,” the picture would be bleak. Compared to men, women are devalued in the workplace, the home, and the community.

    Women are disproportionately affected by poverty and homelessness, and are more likely to be targets of violence—particularly intimate partner violence.

    In many countries in the Global South, girls are likely to be married before they turn 18, often against their free will.  

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  • Blog post
    February 10, 2012

    Saving Low Birth Weight Babies by Keeping Them Warm

    Every year, 20 million low birth weight (LBW) babies are born. One of the biggest problems these babies face is simply keeping warm: They are too small to maintain their body heat at normal room temperatures. Four million of them each year do not survive their first month. A new nonprofit organization, Embrace, is helping these infants survive with its innovative Infant Warmer. “These babies are so tiny they don’t have enough fat to regulate their own body temperature,” Jane Chen, Embrace’s Co-founder and CEO, told a recent ABC News program. Over the next five years, Embrace estimates it could save 100,000 babies and prevent illness in as many as 800,000.

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  • Blog post
    February 03, 2012

    After the Earthquake: Rebuilding In Haiti Through Maternal and Child Health

    Port Au Prince - Haiti

    Two years ago, Haiti was hit with a massive earthquake. Even before this disaster, Haiti’s health system could not meet the needs of its nearly 10 million people. While some things had been improving (recent years had seen a decrease in HIV infection rates, more vaccinations, and improvements in the lives of children under 5), roughly 40% of the population had no access to basic health care. The widespread devastation of the earthquake was a severe blow to this already challenged system.

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  • Blog post
    January 09, 2012

    USAID Reminds Us Why We Should Invest In Women

    In writing the blog series “Women of the World,” I have covered many different aspects of women’s equality. This is a topic I feel strongly about, not just because I’m a woman, but because I know how important women’s rights and equality are to social change for everyone. In the developing world, a focus on improving the status and equality of women leads to stronger societies and increased development across many sectors, including  agriculture, banking, health, politics, and education.

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