Women Deliver for Development

Based on the paper by

Kirrin Gill, Rohini Pande,
and Anju Malhotra

International Center for

Research on Women
(ICRW)

Photo credit: USAID/L. Lartigue

 Four Key Issues
1) State of maternal health in the developing world needs
urgent attention
2) Maternal health is critical to development worldwide
3) Promoting maternal health is a matter of human rights
4) Preventing maternal death and disability in developing
countries is feasible
 Women Deliver as Mothers:
State of Maternal Health
● Unsatisfactory progress
● Large regional differences
● Large number of deaths within the first month of life
● Delivery and postpartum care remain poor
 Inequities in Maternal Care
Poorest women in poorest regions have least access to skilled care during childbirth

All Countries 84.0

(45 countries) 31.2

Sub-Saharan Africa 82.1

(22 countries) 24.6

South Asia 49.3 Richest Quintile

(4 countries) 5.3 Poorest Quintile

Middle East, North Africa 82.2

(3 countries) 12.8

Latin America, Caribbean 94.3

(9 countries) 40.2

Europe, Central Asia 99.7

(4 countries) 82.7

East Asia, Pacific 93.4

(3 countries) 30.5

0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 120.0

Attended Delivery by a Medically Trained Person

Gwatkin et al., 2000

Conceptual Framework
WOMEN AS…

Citizens

Family Members

Individuals

Mothers
 Maternal Health and Development
Maternal health:
● Improves when women are empowered
● Is intricately linked to reproductive health
● Has profound effects on children and families

Poor maternal health is:

● Costly for families and countries
● Significant proportion of global burden of disease
 Women Deliver as Individuals:
Links with Women’s Human Rights and
Empowerment
● Strongly linked to better maternal health
 Education
 Economic opportunities
 Household decision making
 Intimate partner violence
 Women Deliver as Individuals:
Links with Reproductive Health
● Contraceptive use
 Improves maternal health

● Unsafe abortion
 Major cause of maternal mortality, morbidity
 13% of maternal deaths worldwide

● HIV and AIDS

 Leading cause of maternal death in Africa
 Women Deliver as Family Members:
Effects on Children and Families
● Health and survival
 Children less likely to survive, especially girls
 Surviving children less likely to be healthy and educated

● Economic and social costs

 Families lose up to 1/3 of income in treatment costs
 Families lose mother’s income and non-paid work
Women Deliver as Citizens: Effects on
National Health and Productivity

● Significant burden of disease

 Leading cause of death and disability for adult women
 13% of deaths and of healthy life-years

● Lost productivity
 More than US$15 billion per year
 Investing in Maternal Health:
Potential and Shortfalls
● Gap between actual and needed investment
 $1.2 billion spent in 2006
 $5 billion per year is needed until 2010

● Gap can be closed

 Only 0.016% of global GNP; 2% of global aid
 Interventions highly cost-effective
 Success stories abound even in poorer countries
 Conclusions
● Maternal health, gender, and development are linked
● Shortfall in resources and lack of progress are disturbing
● Financial investment and political commitment can save
the lives of women and children
Invest in women to fulfill
their potential to deliver
as mothers, individuals,
family members, and
citizens