Topic: 2025 – Maternal Mortality
Country: Saudi Arabia
Delegate Name: Clara Winstanley
In the last two decades, there has been an estimated 40% decrease in maternal mortality rates, a victorious milestone but one that still leaves 260,000 women dying each year in causes surrounding childbirth as of 2023. These preventable losses are unacceptable, and it is the responsibility of every country to contribute to decreasing rates. The World Health Organization has set a current global target for less than 70 deaths per 100,000 by the year 2030. This plan shifts depending on the standings of countries as of 2010, demanding an overall two thirds reduction for each country and outlining the importance that no country has a ratio exceeding twice the global target, at 140 per 100,000. Even with the marked improvement seen in the past decade, the world is currently on track to fall short of this goal, which is why it is ever the more important to continue and expand support and efforts.
Over the last forty years, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has seen a marked improvement in maternal mortality rates, and plans to continue this trend. The WHO reports the Maternal Mortality ratio at 7.36 per 100,000 live births as of 2023, a 33 death decrease from the year 1985. The Kingdom believes it is imperative to continue this trend by focusing on the affordability of healthcare and transparency of cost, allowing a safe and secure environment for mothers to feel comfortable entering, while further educating the public on the importance of assisted birth, therefore making mothers more likely to utilize such resources. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia specifically outlines a plan through the Saudi Childbirth Initiative (SCI), in a guidebook for the Mother Baby-Family Friendly Maternity Care Facility (MBFMF) Initiative. Here, the Kingdom emphasizes an approach in which focuses on preventative measures and care for the mother in order to shift away from the unnecessary expensive and heavy medical interventions, a process which will ensure more equitable and affordable care.
Globally, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia supports the 2030 target, and encourages the continued progress on the goal in every country through increased access to care and information, along with the promotion of more natural birthing practices to prevent troubling intervention. Oftentimes, mothers pass from birthing complications, which is why the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia believes that if a threat is detected to the mother’s life or health prior to the 120 day mark of a pregnancy, an abortion may be allowed if signed off by two specialists. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia stands against the practice of abortion in any case not linked to the immediate health of mother, and believes that providing education to the mother, along with an assurance of emergency care, adequate human resources, and an open environment under the mother’s control will craft a place where mothers will feel open to and safe giving birth, reducing the chances of unsafe abortion practices in the face of regulation.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia intends to continue to fight to lower the MMR, and urges the UN to expand efforts and funding in lower income countries to create programs to provide wider access to maternal care across the world.
Resources:
https://www.moh.gov.sa/en/Ministry/MediaCenter/Publications/Pages/Saudi-Childbirth-Initiative-Guidebook.pdf
https://iris.who.int/server/api/core/bitstreams/3000d5f4-bf9d-490c-83f9-d5afc4f5634d/content
https://abortion-policies.srhr.org/country/saudi-arabia/
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/maternal-mortality
https://platform.who.int/docs/default-source/mca-documents/qoc/quality-of-care/strategies-toward-ending-preventable-maternal-mortality-(epmm).pdf?sfvrsn=a31dedb6_4
https://my.gov.sa/en/content/women-empowering#section-2
