00:00Africa has made remarkable gains in maternal health, making pregnancy and childbirth safer
00:07than it's ever been.
00:09Even then, sub-Saharan Africa accounted for 70 percent of the global burden of maternal
00:14deaths in 2023.
00:15A report by the WHO warns that the gains could be lost as unprecedented aid cuts take effect
00:23around the world.
00:24The key findings of the report, first of all, the good news.
00:28Maternal mortality has declined 40 percent since the year 2000.
00:33This is due to improvements in skilled birth attendants and increases in universal health
00:37coverage, which means that more women are accessing good quality, timely services when
00:42they need them.
00:43The report mentions Chad, the Central African Republic, Nigeria and Somalia as being some
00:49of the riskiest for pregnant women due to conflict or fragility.
00:53There is a widening gap between countries which are experiencing long-term threats to
01:00the effect of their health systems, particularly those countries which are affected by conflict
01:04or institutional fragility.
01:07And the report shows that three out of five maternal deaths are taking place in countries
01:11affected either by conflict or by long-term fragility.
01:15The report comes as humanitarian funding cuts are having severe impacts on essential health
01:20care in many parts of the world, forcing countries to roll back vital services for
01:25maternal, newborn and child health.
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