The world made major progress in cutting maternal deaths over the past 25 years. However, the United Nations warned on Monday that this progress has nearly come to a halt. It also cautioned that recent global aid cuts could undo these gains.
Maternal Deaths Dropped by 40%, But Progress Has Stalled
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that maternal deaths worldwide fell by 40% since 2000. Yet, progress slowed sharply after 2016.
Pascale Allotey, who heads WHO’s sexual and reproductive health branch, said, “The pace of progress has slowed to a near standstill, (and) in some regions, we are already sliding backwards.” She reminded that “most maternal deaths are preventable” and warned, “In this context of fragility, complacency is not just dangerous, it is deadly.”
In 2023, around 260,000 women died due to pregnancy-related causes. That means one woman died every two minutes.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, “While this report shows glimmers of hope, the data also highlights how dangerous pregnancy still is in much of the world today.” He urged countries to improve maternity care and also protect women’s health and reproductive rights.
Aid Cuts Threaten Further Progress
UN agencies expressed concern that global aid cuts could reverse maternal health improvements. They blamed the funding freeze by US President Donald Trump after his return in January. This move left many humanitarian groups struggling.
Bruce Aylward, WHO’s assistant director-general for universal health coverage, said, “We’re going to face increasing headwinds.” He called the funding cuts “an acute shock” and noted that countries have not had time to find alternative funding to keep essential health services going.
The WHO report said that budget cuts had already closed health facilities and caused staff shortages. Supply chains for vital treatments like those for haemorrhage, pre-eclampsia, and malaria also suffered. These are some of the leading causes of maternal deaths.
COVID-19 Showed the Danger of Health Disruptions
The COVID-19 pandemic had a deadly impact on maternal care. Jenny Cresswell, the WHO report’s lead author, said maternal deaths rose to 322,000 in 2021, compared to 282,000 in 2020.
“There were around 40,000 additional maternal deaths in the year 2021,” she said. “This upsurge was linked not only to direct implications caused by Covid-19, but also due to widespread disruptions to maternity care.”
She added, “This shows how critical it is to ensure that maternity services are protected during any emergency.”
Sub-Saharan Africa Hit Hardest; US Sees Rise
The report showed major inequality across regions. Sub-Saharan Africa made strong progress since 2000 but still made up 70% of all maternal deaths in 2023.
Meanwhile, after 2015, progress in North Africa, parts of Asia, Europe, and North America stopped.
Cresswell said, “The United States is one of the countries where we are seeing increasing trends.” Still, she explained that the US maternal death rate remains low globally.
She also said it’s too early to judge the effect of the 2022 US Supreme Court ruling that ended federal abortion rights.