1 Less than 10
2 10 to 49
3 50 to 99
4 100 to 499
5 500 to 999
6 More than 1000
7 No data
1 0 to 5
2 5 to 10
3 10 to 20
4 20 to 30
5 30 to 40
6 40+
7 No Data

Maternal Mortality Ratio

What does it mean ?

The Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) is the rate at which women die from maternal causes (any cause related to pregnancy, during childbirth, pregnancy or within 42 days of childbirth). It is measured as the number of maternal deaths per every 100,000 live births. A live birth refers to any baby that is born that shows signs of life outside of the womb. A maternal death refers to the death of woman while she is pregnant or within 42 days of childbirth, from any cause related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its management. Maternal deaths exclude accidental or other non-related causes of death. The MMR represents the risk associated with each pregnancy and birth.

Why does it matter ?

Problems during pregnancy and childbirth are a leading cause of death and disability of women of reproductive age (15-49 years) in low income countries. This indicator acts as a record of deaths related to pregnancy and childbirth and reflects the ability of a country's healthcare system to provide safe care during pregnancy and childbirth. The Maternal Mortality Ratio is an indicator for monitoring Sustainable Development Goal 3 Health and Wellbeing Target 3.1: By 2030, reduce the global maternal mortality ratio to less than 70 per 100,000 live births.

How is it collected ?

In high income countries the data for MMR are from nationally registered deaths to women, with maternal death as the cause, then dividing by the number of registered live births. If birth and death registration is incomplete other methods are used such as a special survey or population censuses. Where there are no data, an estimate is generated from three factors: GDP, fertility rate and births attended by a skilled attendant.

MMR 2017 - TRENDS IN MATERNAL MORTALITY 2000 to 2017 Estimates by WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, World Bank Group and the United Nations Population Division. https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/327595/9789241516488-eng.pdf?ua=1 [Accessed 9 March 2020]

Infant Mortality Rate

What does it mean ?

The infant mortality rate is the probability that a child will die between the time of birth and exactly 1 year of age; it is expressed per every 1000 live births in that same year. A live birth refers to any baby that is born that shows signs of life outside of the womb.

Why does it matter ?

Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) was chosen as one of the indicators to be tracked as part of the targets of Millennium Development Goal 4, to reduce child mortality. It is a general indicator of child health. Rather than being an indicator that looks specifically at health care delivery it is an indicator of the socio-economic, environmental and nutritional status of children.

How is it collected ?

A preferable source of data for calculating Infant Mortality Rates is from nationally registered births and deaths. Where registration systems are incomplete, other methods are used such as household surveys where women are asked about every baby they have given birth to and how long the child survived or population censuses. To calculate the mortality estimate, the data from these sources are analysed statistically using a particular model designed by the UN Inter-Agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation.

IMR 2018 - World Bank. 2020. Mortality rate, infant (per 1,000 live births). https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.IMRT.IN [Accessed 9 March 2020]