Shocking numbers: Mother mortality threatened by cuts!

Shocking numbers: Mother mortality threatened by cuts!

In 2023, around 260,000 women worldwide died during and shortly after birth. This frightening number is described by the World Health Organization (WHO) as unacceptable, since most of these deaths would be avoidable. A woman dies every two minutes based on pregnancy complications, with estimates showing that over 90% of all Maternal deaths occur in countries with low and low-medium income. In these regions, the mothers -mortity rate (MMR) is around 346 per 100,000 live births, compared to only about ten in the low -income countries, the Kleine Zeitung .

A particularly worrying example is Nigeria, where around 75,000 women died in 2023. The numbers are also alarming in India, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Pakistan, since these countries together make up almost half of all global cases. In Europe, on the other hand, a total of 450 deaths were registered in 2023, which makes the region one of the areas with low maternal mortality. However, it turns out that mothers' mortality rates stagnating in European countries were also determined between 2016 and 2020, as new data from the WHO and other UN organizations show.

causes and challenges

The main causes of maternal mortality are severe bleeding after birth, infections, high blood pressure during pregnancy and complications from uncertain abortions. The MMR is 504 per 100,000 live births in particular in conflict areas in which systemic problems in the health system occur. In the United States, an increase in maternal mortality is observed, although the country had previously had a very low rate. According to WHO, access to contraceptives, safe abortion services and high -quality aftercare is of crucial importance to avoid deaths.

The WHO emphasizes that access to health services is severely restricted in low -income countries. Often only 73% of the births are accompanied by trained staff. Social determinants such as income, education and ethnicity increase the risk of certain groups, which further fragments of various health advantages. The WHO urges the need for investments in health systems, infrastructure and training of health personnel to improve mothers health and to reduce mothers.

goals and progress

An alarming trend has been the slow development since 2016, which says that the progress in maternal mortality is noticeably weakened. Unicef ​​warns that cuts in aid endanger the progress in the fight against maternal mortality that leads to institutions, the loss of health personnel and disorders in the care of life -saving medication. The WHO has set itself the goal of reducing maternal mortality to less than 70 deaths per 100,000 births by 2030. To achieve this goal, an annual reduction rate of almost 15% would be required. The improvement of the mothers health is of the highest priority for the WHO, which develops corresponding research and evidence -based guidelines.