*PH.D. Scholar, Karunya School of Business, Leadership and Management, Karunya University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India
**Professor and Research Guide, Karunya School of Bussiness, Leadership and Management, Karunya University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India
Online published on 7 April, 2014.
Globally, an estimated 287000 maternal deaths occurred in 2010, a decline of 47% from levels in 1990. Sub – Saharan Africa 56% and Southern Asia 29% accounted for 85% of the global burden (245000 maternal deaths) in 2010. At country level, two countries account for a third of global maternal deaths: India at 19% (56000) and Nigeria at 14% (40, 000). The global MMR in 2010 was 210 maternal deaths per 100000 live births down from 400 maternal deaths per 10000 live births in 1990. MMR in developing regions (240) was 15 times higher than in developed regions (16) Sub – Saharan Africa had the highest MMR at 500 while Eastern Asia has the lowest among developing regions. In descending order of maternal deaths per 100000 live births are Southern Asia (220), Oceania (200), South East Asia (150), Latin America and Caribbean (80), North Africa (78), Western Asia (71) and the Caucasus and Central Asia (46). In order that the worst performers namely Sub – Saharan Africa and Southern Asia are to catch up with other regions, their country level governments should introduce special interventions.
Adult Lifetime risk of maternal death, Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), Maternal Deaths, Maternal Mortality Rate (MM Rate), Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR), Late Maternal Deaths, the proportion of maternal deaths among deaths of women of reproductive age (PM)
