Maternal and Child Health

60 per cent of all maternal deaths and 40 per cent of infant deaths take place in the Commonwealth. There are not enough skilled health personnel to care for pregnant mothers and newborns. In some regions neonatal deaths have made no improvement over the last decade.

Infant mortality rates in the Commonwealth average 42 deaths per 1000 births and range from 2 - 165 deaths per 1000. The Maternal Mortality Ratio averages 750 deaths per 100,000 births (compared to a world average of 400) and ranges from 5 - 2000 deaths per 100,000.

Our role to help member countries attain the fourth and fifth Millennium Development Goals: reduce child mortality and improve maternal health.

We focus on the 12 Commonwealth countries with the highest rate of maternal and child health related mortality and morbidity. They are Kenya, Mozambique, Malawi, Nigeria, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Bangladesh, Cameroon, Lesotho, Sierra Leone and India.

Our main focuses:

• Examining the challenges facing maternal and child health programmes in member countries. Evidence helps countries develop more effective policies, improving the care they give to women and children.
• Assessing the main legal challenges affecting access to care for women and adolescents. We also assess barriers faced by adolescents in accessing the sexual and reproductive health services.
• We worked with partners to develop a curriculum for an advanced Midwifery degree.
  
• Addressing unsafe abortion through discussion papers and outline recommendations.
  
• Highlighting adolescent reproductive and sexual health as an essential part of the strategy to reduce maternal mortality, through a discussion note on Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health.
• Looking at the status of adolescent friendly reproductive and sexual health by developing a policy brief.

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