The number of women dying from pregnancy-related causes has dropped sharply over the past two decades, but experts warn that recent funding cuts and restrictions on abortion access could threaten hard-won progress.
A new study published in The Lancet Global Health found that global maternal deaths fell by 41% between 2000 and 2023 — from around 443,000 to 260,000. The analysis, led by researchers from the World Health Organization (WHO) and top universities, examined data from 195 countries to uncover the main drivers behind this decline.
According to the findings, 61.2% of the reduction in maternal deaths was linked to improved maternity care — including the presence of skilled health workers during childbirth, better emergency services, and stronger postpartum support. The remaining 38.8% was attributed to fertility reduction, largely through the use of contraceptives and access to safer abortions.
Contraceptive use alone prevented an estimated 77,400 maternal deaths in 2023 — roughly one in four of all averted deaths that year. Researchers said this highlights the crucial role that family planning plays in improving women’s health and survival outcomes.
“Access to contraception and quality maternity care are not just health interventions – they are fundamental to saving lives and advancing gender equality,” said Pascale Allotey, director of sexual and reproductive health at the WHO.
Maternal deaths are defined as fatalities that occur during pregnancy, childbirth, or within six weeks after delivery. The most common causes include severe bleeding, pregnancy-related high blood pressure, infections, blood clots, abortion complications, and obstructed labour — when the baby cannot pass through the birth canal.
The study found that countries that expanded access to reproductive health services and invested in maternal care saw the most progress. However, researchers cautioned that global health setbacks could reverse these gains.
They pointed in particular to growing political efforts to restrict abortion access and recent reductions in global health funding — including cuts to the US Agency for International Development (USAID) — as potential threats to continued progress.
“Every woman, everywhere, must have the means to plan her family and access the care she needs for preventing unintended pregnancy and for a safe pregnancy and childbirth,” Allotey said.
The authors called for greater integration of family planning programmes into maternity care and renewed investment in reproductive health systems. Without sustained commitment, they warned, the world risks stalling or even reversing the decline in maternal mortality achieved over the past two decades.
