For as long as women have been giving birth, serious dangers to the health and wellbeing of mothers and their newborns have led to their unfortunate deaths. Over time, states across the globe have made efforts to improve the staggering statistics, however, women are still continuing to die from childbirth. Various branches of the United Nations have worked closely together to put together resolutions and propose solutions, and it is important as ever that those efforts continue. In previous conventions and resolutions the UN had set a Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) of 70 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births by 2030 (about 1 per 1428), which is a goal that has been exceeded by many European and western nations at this time but is still far from being achieved in other regions.
The work that has been done by the UN up until this point has been done in conjunction with the progression of women’s rights; while that issue is tied to maternal mortality, it is important for this committee to focus in on the specific nuances of maternal deaths and, similarly, what can be done about the pre and post-natal care for these women and their newborns. According to findings by the UN, the majority of pregnancy and birth complications that lead to death are preventable, and one’s risk of maternal mortality is heavily dependent upon their geographic location as well as their income level. Based on research, Australia and New Zealand have the lowest rates of maternal mortality, standing at 1 in 21,248, and Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest, standing at 1 in 55, which also coincides with countries’ income levels. Because this difference is vast between any two nations, it is important that the initial focus be placed on closing this gap and decreasing these health and care disparities that are resulting in women dying based on where they live and their limited access to care.
This committee has a necessary task set before them to carefully discuss and articulate how UN states are going to work together to address the continued disparities and access to care across the globe. Although maternal mortality is inherently tied into women’s rights as a collective issue, it is important that this committee stay focused on the specific issue of maternal mortality and how that particular piece of equality and equity can be achieved. That being said, it is also important that WHO not limit their scope to the birthing mother, as this issue also includes pre and post-natal care for the fetus/newborn as well. Similarly, women who choose not to carry out a pregnancy also need to be considered, since unsafe abortions are also an indirect way that pregnant women are being harmed.
Focus Questions
- How can care and changes be implemented equitably in order to reduce the disparities in care globally?
- What are the specific instruments, groups, and tools that can be utilized to limit the number of maternal deaths?
- How can current policies and resolutions be utilized to inform the current discussion on this topic?
- What are the pieces of pre and post-natal care that are causing this large number of deaths and what can be done by individual countries to change this?
Useful Links:
United Nations Fund for Population Activities Report on Trends in Maternal Mortality 2000-2023
https://www.unfpa.org/publications/trends-maternal-mortality-2000-2023
WHO Maternal Mortality Fact Sheet:
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/maternal-mortality
