An unacceptable number of women in developing countries die giving birth compared with the rest of the world and the imbalance must be corrected with better access to health care, three UN agencies said on Monday.
Of some 529 000 maternal deaths in 2000, 95% occured in Africa and Asia, against four percent in Latin America and less than one percent in more developed regions, according to research by the World Health Organisation (WHO), UN Children’s Fund (Unicef) and UN Population Fund (UNFPA).
Women giving birth in sub-Saharan Africa had a one in 16 risk of dying, compared with a one in 2 800 risk for females in richer countries, the three agencies said in a new global report on maternal mortality released on Monday.
”Many women deliver their children alone or with family members or other untrained attendants who lack the skill to deal with complications during delivery, WHO director general Lee Jong-wook said in a statement.
”Skilled attendants are vital because they can recognise and prevent medical crises and provide or refer for life-saving care when complications arise.”
Reducing the number of mothers who die in labour was vital to give their offspring the best chance of survival, the agencies noted.
”These new estimates indicate an unacceptably high number of women dying in childbirth and an urgent need for increased access to emergency obsteric care, especially in sub-Saharan Africa,” Unicef executive director Carol Bellamy said in the statement.
In 2000, world leaders agreed to slash the numer of maternal deaths by 75% by 2015, but health experts have warned that it was hard to track the progress of this pledge because the cause of death was often not recorded.
The chance of dying whilst in labour could be reduced by a quicker recognition of complications as well as faster access to a medical facility and good quality care, the three agencies said.
”Efforts to address these delays are essential in order to save the lives of mothers and babies,” they said.
The WHO, Unicef and UNFPA pledged to boost their efforts to helping countries strengthen their maternal health programmes. – Sapa-AFP