There is increasing evidence that women with the ability to exercise control over their sexual and reproductive lives have greater access to prompt prevention and treatment of maternal health disorders, resulting in a concomitant reduction in maternal morbidity and mortality. This study assessed the association between indices of women's empowerment and utilization of skilled antenatal, intrapartum and postnatal maternity care in two rural Local Government Areas in Edo State, Nigeria.

Engagement of men in defining relevant solutions is key to changing harmful social norms and to reaching successful maternal and child health outcomes. The IMCHA research team "Improving Access to Health Services and Quality of Care for Mothers and Children in Tanzania" studied how men can be involved in maternal and child health. 

Maternal death rates in sub-Saharan Africa have dropped almost 40% since 2000, yet the region still has the highest number of maternal deaths, at 533 deaths per 100,000 live births. This figure translated to 200,000 deaths in 2017, UNICEF reports. Poverty, low education levels, violence against women, early marriage, and adolescent pregnancy continue to mark the lives of many women, contributing to their poor health and high mortality. 

Malawi's progress in reducing deaths in children under five years (between 1992 and 2016) is spectacular: a drop of 73% (from 234 deaths per 1,000 live births to 63 deaths). Over the same period, however, deaths during the first month of life held firm at 27 per 1,000 live births ― one of the highest rates in the world. Malawi also has the world's highest rate of premature births (babies born before the 37th week of pregnancy). More than half of these babies will develop respiratory distress syndrome, which increases the risk of serious infections such as neonatal pneumonia and sepsis.

IDRC-supported research has been underway in South Sudan and northern Uganda since 2015 to improve maternal and child health. In these post-conflict settings, researchers are strengthening local health systems, reducing barriers to access, empowering women, and mobilizing communities to take action on their health needs.  

IMCHA research team "Quality improvement for maternal and newborn health at district-level scale in Mtwara Region Tanzania" studied how to improve the quality improvement methodology whereby stakeholders identify problems in their own contexts and create strategies to improve them.

Mozambique has high maternal (451.6 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births in 2017) and new-born mortality rates.1 The Alert Community for a Prepared Hospital care continuum, is a project promoted by the Faculty of Health Sciences (FHS) of UniLúrio (Lúrio University) in Nampula, Northern Mozambique and the University of Saskatchewan (Canada), in partnership with Nampula Provincial Health Directorate, the Marrere Health Centre (MHC) and the Marrere General Hospital (MGH), the Natikiri Administrative Post (NAP) and other non-governmental organizations with health sector activities in Nampula.

Longer spacing between births improves children's health. It can be promoted by encouraging breastfeeding, engaging men and addressing gender norms that give preference to male children. In Sub-Saharan Africa it is common for children to be born more closely together than recommended. This is well documented to have negative health outcomes for children

"She's like a sister to me," Sulaina Nassaka says about Ruth Nakuya, a community health promoter in Lwengo District, Uganda. Nakuya, who works with the non-governmental organization BRAC International, recently visited the young mother and treated her son for malaria. "I saw women dying because the hospitals are far away and I knew that my village really needed my help," Nakuya says. 

Maternal mortality has been an issue of global importance, with continued efforts by the international development community towards its reduction. The provision of high quality maternal healthcare has been identified as a key strategy in preventing maternal mortality.  

Nicholas Castel / IDRC Information campaigns in Jimma, Ethiopia, highlight the importance of medically supervised deliveries.Many pregnant women in rural Ethiopia have a long way to go to reach a health facility where basic emergency obstetric care is available. However, research carried out by Jimma University in Ethiopia and the University of Ottawa, Canada, shows that cultural factors and service infrastructure may be as much to blame as poor road quality and long distances.

​While Primary Health Care has been designed to provide universal access to skilled pregnancy care for the prevention of maternal deaths in Nigeria, available evidence suggests that pregnant women in rural communities often do not use Primary Health Care Centres for skilled care. The objective of this study was to investigate the reasons why women do not use PHC for skilled pregnancy care in rural Nigeria.

Greater paternal engagement is positively associated with improved access to and utilization of maternal services. Despite evidence that male involvement increased uptake of maternal and child services, studies show that few men are participating in MNCH programs.