MATERNAL DEATHS REMAIN HIGH DESPITE INTERNATIONAL EFFORTS

[mki]

"I do not believe for one minute, that if men were dying in their prime in
these
numbers, so little would be being done." - James Wolfensohn, President of
the World Bank


MATERNAL DEATHS REMAIN HIGH DESPITE INTERNATIONAL EFFORTS
SAYS NEW REPORT


Each year more than 525,000 women die from complications of pregnancy
and childbirth. In addition, over 50 million experience pregnancy-related
complications, 15 million of which lead to long-term illness or disability.
For
years, this has been the single greatest cause of premature death and
disability among women of reproductive age in the developing world. Today
maternal deaths are second only to deaths from AIDS.

The tragedy is that almost every one of these deaths is avoidable. Failures
to
address the needs of pregnant and birthing women are a social injustice of
huge proportions.

A new report from the Panos Institute (London), Birth rights: new approaches
to safe motherhood, highlights the fact that since 1987, when an
International
Safe Motherhood Initiative* was adopted, there has been little evidence of
significant reductions in the number of women dying globally.

The report cites a number of factors that contribute to these deaths. Many
countries have practices enshrined in law and culture which inhibit women's
chances of surviving pregnancy and childbirth. Early marriage, for example,
can lead to childbearing before physical development is complete. Lack of
access to safe, legal abortion and advice is another example. This has
recently become harder in many parts of the world as a result of the
so-called
'gag' rule, which applies to organizations that receive aid funds from the
US
for family planning. The rule requires recipients of US funds to refrain
from
advocating for changes in abortion laws, or except in limited circumstances,
providing abortion information, counselling or services, even with their own
funds.

The impact in many developing countries has been immediate. In Nepal, a
country where 1 in 10 women die from pregnancy-related causes -
approximately half from unsafe abortion - the Family Planning Association of
Nepal (FPAN) has had to relinquish a relationship with USAID which had
lasted 26 years. "If I were to accept the restricted USfunds," said FPAN
director general, Dr Nirmal K Bista, "I would be prevented from speaking in
my own country to my own government about a healthcare crisis I know
firsthand."

The report goes on to point out another reason for maternal deaths is that
maternity facilities are under-resourced - in the opinion of local experts
almost half of maternity services in a study of 49 developing countries
would
not be able to carry out one or more of the life-saving procedures they are
meant to offer.

In addition, there is a gap between what scientific evidence has shown to be
best practice, and what actually happens to many women when they give
birth. Regional variations in birth practices are considerable. Several
procedures, routine in some maternity facilities - such as being required to
adopt a supine position, being strapped down while giving birth, pubic
shaving
and overuse of surgical procedures - are not beneficial for women and even
harmful.

The current target of the International Safe Motherhood Initiative is a 75%
reduction in deaths from 1990 levels by 2015. "This target is achievable,"
says Judy Mirsky, the author of the report. "But governments must be
prepared to implement the necessary changes in their laws and policies and
to improve maternity services for all women."

Unsafe motherhood - the facts
1. For every woman who dies of maternal causes in developed
countries, 99 will die in the developing world;
2. The greatest risks of maternal death are faced by women in sub-
Saharan Africa;
3. Across regions, lifetime risks of maternal death vary from a low of 1
in 4,000 in Northern Europe to a high of 1 in 16 in sub-Saharan Africa and 1
in 12 in East and West Africa;
4. In South-east Asia the lifetime risk of death is 1 in 55, in the
Caribbean 1 in 75 and in South America 1 in 140;
5. The World Bank has estimated that the financial cost of basic
maternal and newborn health services is, on average, US$3 per person per
year in developing countries; maternal health services alone could cost as
little as US$2 per person.
ENDS 27/11/01

Press Information:
For more information on the report contact Judy Mirsky by email
judym at panoslondon.org.uk . To arrange an interview with Judy Mirsky or for
more general information on Panos contact Mark Covey tel +44 (0)20 7239
7622 (work), +44 (0)20 8960 1282 (home), 07941 286 338(mobile) or by email
markc at panoslondon.org.uk.
The report is also available to download in pdf format from the Panos London
website -
http://www.panos.org.uk/briefing/birth_rights_files/birth_rights_cover.htm


Notes to editors:
· * The International Safe Motherhood Initiative was launched in 1987
by an inter-agency group of the World Health Organization, the World Bank,
the United Nations Population Fund, the United Nations Children's Fund, the
International Planned Parenthood Foundation and the Population Council.
The group now also includes the International Confederation of Midwives, the
International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics, the Regional
Prevention of Maternal Mortality Network (Africa) and the Safe Motherhood
Network of Nepal. The Secretariat is provided by Family Care International
in
the US.
· Judy Mirsky is founding director of the Panos Reproductive Health
and Gender Programme and was previously editor and author for the Panos
AIDS Programme. She formerly worked for Save the Children (UK) on public
information and education programmes and for an Oxfam/Indian-government-
supported NGO in Uttar Pradesh, Northern India. She holds a BA in Natural
Science and an MSc in Social Science.
· The Panos Institute - www.panos.org.uk - exists to stimulate public
debate on global change and development. It has 11 offices around the world.