GENEVA / NEW YORK – New United Nations data show a 45 per cent reduction in maternal deaths since 1990. An estimated 289 000 women died in 2013 due to complications in pregnancy and childbirth, down from 523 000 in 1990.

UNITED NATIONS, New York – New data from the United Nations reveal that maternal deaths have declined by 45 per cent since 1990. Some 523,000 deaths occurred from complications in pregnancy or childbirth in 1990; in 2013, that number was 289,000.

<p>Globally, in the past two decades, maternal death has declined by nearly half. In the same period, skilled birth attendance has increased by 15 per cent, with two out of three deliveries worldwide now attended by a skilled health professional.