Only two decades ago, for every 1,000 live births, about 3.4 women and 52 babies died late in pregnancy or during the neonatal period. We have since witnessed an impressive decline in maternal and newborn mortality to an estimated 2.1 women and 31 late fetal and newborn deaths. And because fertility also declined, the number of deaths declined even more.
But we are still far from the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of 0.7 maternal deaths and 12 neonatal deaths per 1,000 live births, as well as global targets of 12 or fewer stillbirths per 1,000 total births by 2030. Are we ready for a big stride forward? Read more.