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The Maternal mortality rate (MMR) is the annual number of female deaths per 100,000 live births from any cause related to or aggravated by pregnancy or its management (excluding accidental or incidental causes).
The global rate is 224 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births in 2020 (latest available year for some countries). [1]
From 2000 to 2020, the global maternal mortality ratio (MMR) declined by 34 per cent – from 339 deaths to 223 deaths per 100,000 live births, according to UN inter-agency estimates. This translates into an average annual rate of reduction of 2.1 per cent.
- Key Facts
- Overview
- Where Do Maternal Deaths occur?
- Why Do Women Die?
- How Can Women’s Lives Be Saved?
- Why Do Women Not Get The Care They Need?
- What Was The Impact of Covid-19 Pandemic on Maternal Mortality?
- The Sustainable Development Goals and Maternal Mortality
- Who Response
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Every day in 2020, almost 800 women died from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth.A maternal death occurred almost every two minutes in 2020.Between 2000 and 2020, the maternal mortality ratio (MMR, number of maternal deaths per 100 000 live births) dropped by about 34% worldwide.Almost 95% of all maternal deaths occurred in low and lower middle-income countries in 2020.Maternal mortality is unacceptably high. About 287 000 women died during and following pregnancy and childbirth in 2020. Almost 95% of all maternal deaths occurred in low and lower middle-income countries in 2020, and most could have been prevented. Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) regions and sub-regionsare used here. Sub-Saharan Africa and Sout...
The high number of maternal deaths in some areas of the world reflects inequalities in access to quality health services and highlights the gap between rich and poor. The MMR in low-income countries in 2020 was 430 per 100 000 live births versus 13 per 100 000 live births in high income countries. Humanitarian, conflict, and post-conflict settings ...
Women die as a result of complications during and following pregnancy and childbirth. Most of these complications develop during pregnancy and most are preventable or treatable. Other complications may exist before pregnancy but are worsened during pregnancy, especially if not managed as part of the woman’s care. The major complications that accoun...
To avoid maternal deaths, it is vital to prevent unintended pregnancies. All women, including adolescents, need access to contraception, safe abortion services to the full extent of the law, and quality post-abortion care. Most maternal deaths are preventable, as the health-care solutions to prevent or manage complications are well known. All women...
Poor women in remote areas are the least likely to receive adequate health care (3).This is especially true for SDG regions with relatively low numbers of skilled health care providers, such as Sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia. The latest available data suggest that in most high income and upper middle income countries, approximately 99% of all...
It is clear from the data that the stagnation in maternal mortality reductions pre-dates the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic may have contributed to the lack of progress but does not represent the full explanation. The level of maternal mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic may have been impacted by two mechanisms: de...
In the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), countries have united behind the target to accelerate the decline of maternal mortality by 2030. SDG 3 includes an ambitious target: “reducing the global MMR to less than 70 per 100 000 births, with no country having a maternal mortality rate of more than twice the global average”. The glob...
Improving maternal health is one of WHO’s key priorities. WHO works to contribute to the reduction of maternal mortality by increasing research evidence, providing evidence-based clinical and programmatic guidance, setting global standards, and providing technical support to Member States on developing and implementing effective policy and programm...
Learn about the global trends, causes and solutions for maternal deaths in 2020. See the MMRs and lifetime risks for different regions, countries and income levels.
Explore global data and research on pregnancy-related death, how it varies by region and country, and how it has changed over time. See interactive charts, maps, and scenarios of maternal mortality rates and risks.
The maternal mortality ratio (MMR) is defined as the number of maternal deaths during a given time period per 100,000 live births during the same time period. It depicts the risk of maternal death relative to the number of live births and essentially captures the risk of death in a single pregnancy or a single live birth.
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Jul 8, 2024 · The WHO Mortality Database and Gapminder contain reported figures from countries, and are likely to underestimate the true maternal mortality figures. The UN MMEIG aims to estimates the true rate, by adjusting for underreporting and misclassification.
