ISLAMABAD: The World Health Organisation (WHO) has asked international and national partners to urgently invest in reducing maternal and newborn deaths in Pakistan.
In a statement issued on the occasion of World Health Day, it said that every day, 675 under-one-month-old babies and 27 mothers die from preventable complications in Pakistan, amounting to over 9800 maternal and 246,300 newborn deaths each year. Pakistan also registers more than 190,000 stillbirths annually, it said.
“Every country needs healthy mothers and healthy newborns to have a prosperous future and ending maternal and newborn deaths is possible if we all reinvigorate our efforts,” WHO Representative in Pakistan, Dr Dapeng Luo, said, adding that WHO stands by Pakistan to protect the health of babies and their mothers, no matter who they are or where they live.
“A single maternal or newborn death is one too many, and the cost of inaction is far greater than the cost of action,” he said.
UN agencies warn aid cuts threaten progress made in ending maternal deaths in several countries
Every US dollar invested in maternal and newborn health is estimated to yield a return of $9 to $20. Spending on maternal and newborn health is an investment in human capital, not a cost, leading to economic development and happier, healthier societies, he said.
According to WHO, Pakistan has made significant progress over the years. The maternal mortality ratio fell from 276 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2006 to 155 in 2024. Neonatal mortality has declined from 52 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2006 to 37.6 in 2024, and stillbirths fell from 39.8 per 1,000 births in 2000 to 27.5 in 2024.
Pakistan, with support from WHO and partners, has also made progress in tackling maternal and neonatal tetanus (MNT) across the country. Around 80 percent of Pakistan’s population (190 million people) now live in areas where the spread of neonatal tetanus is under controlled limits.
To mark the occasion, United Nations specialised agencies also released a joint report warning that aid cuts have threatened the fragile progress made in ending maternal deaths and cautioning that without urgent action pregnant women in several countries will face severe repercussions.
Women today are more likely than ever to survive pregnancy and childbirth, but the unprecedented aid cuts that take effect around the world, highlights the threat of major backsliding, Unicef, UNFPA, the World Bank Group, WHO and the UN’s Population Division say in the report.
The report titled, Trends in Maternal Mortality, shows a 40 percent decline in maternal deaths between 2000 and 2023 largely due to improved access to essential health services.
Still, the report says, the pace of improvement has slowed significantly since 2016, and that an estimated 260,000 women died in 2023 as a result of complications from pregnancy of childbirth roughly equivalent to one maternal death every two minutes.
The report comes as humanitarian funding cuts are having severe impacts on essential health care in many parts of the world, forcing countries to roll back vital services for maternal, newborn and child health.
These cuts have led to facility closures and loss of health workers, while also disrupting supply chains for lifesaving supplies and medicines such as treatments for haemorrhage, pre-eclampsia and malaria.
While the report shows glimmers of hope, the data also highlights how dangerous pregnancy still is in much of the world today despite the fact that solutions exist to prevent and treat the complications that cause the vast majority of maternal deaths, said WHO DG Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
The report also provides the first global account of the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact on maternal survival. In 2021, an estimated 40,000 more women died due to pregnancy or childbirth increasing to 322,000 from 282,000 the previous year.
This upsurge was linked not only to direct complications caused by Covid-19, but also widespread interruptions to maternity services. This highlights the importance of ensuring such care during pandemics and other emergencies, noting that pregnant women need reliable access to routine services and checks as well as round-the-clock urgent care.
Published in Dawn, April 8th, 2025
