A pregnancy- or childbirth-related death occurred once every 2 minutes in 2020, marking significant shortcomings in women’s health over the last several years, according to a new report developed by United Nations agencies.

“While pregnancy should be a time of immense hope and a positive experience for all women, it is tragically still a shockingly dangerous experience for millions around the world who lack access to high quality, respectful health care,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, PhD, MSc, said in a press release. “These new statistics reveal the urgent need to ensure every woman and girl has access to critical health services before, during and after childbirth, and that they can fully exercise their reproductive rights.”

The report analyzed national, regional and global trends in maternal mortality from 2000 to 2020, with the latter year registering a total of 287,000 maternal mortalities worldwide. According to WHO, this is only a slight decrease from 309,000 maternal deaths in 2016.

The organization noted that some improvements in reducing maternal mortality were made from 2000 to 2015; however, the rates in most regions either stagnated or risen beyond that time. From 2016 to 2020, maternal mortality rates increased in two of the eight U.N. regions: Europe and North America by 17% and Latin America and the Caribbean by 15%. Meanwhile, declines were observed in Australia and New Zealand, where deaths declined 35%, and Central and Southern Asia, which experienced a 16% decline.

Maternal deaths were most heavily concentrated in the poorest areas and countries impacted by conflict, according to WHO. In 2020, approximately 70% of maternal deaths occurred in sub-Saharan Africa.

The leading causes of maternal mortality included:

• severe bleeding;
• complications from unsafe abortions;
• high BP;
• pregnancy-related infections; and
• underlying conditions that may have been aggravated by pregnancy, including HIV.

Although most conditions and ensuing maternal deaths are preventable, WHO noted that global lapses in women’s health care and resources have contributed to rising mortality. According to the organization, about one-third of women do not receive even half of the recommended eight antenatal check-ups or receive postnatal care, while about 270 million women lack access to family planning methods.

“Reducing maternal mortality remains one of the most pressing global health challenges,” John Wilmoth, the director of the U.N.’s Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, said in the release. “With immediate action, more investments in primary health care and stronger, more resilient health systems, we can save lives, improve health and well-being, and advance the rights of and opportunities for women and adolescents.”