Maternal mortality in relation to GDP, education, neonatal mortality, skilled birth attendance, and total fertility rate by country and mapped over time (Global), 1980-2008

Maternal mortality falls as fertility rates fall and education levels and incomes rise

Track trends in the key factors that may influence maternal mortality, such as GDP per capita, maternal education, neonatal mortality, skilled birth attendance, and the total fertility rate in 175 countries from 1980 to 2008. Maternal deaths related to HIV are of particular interest. We have estimated the levels and trends in maternal mortality in a counterfactual scenario where there is no HIV and found that HIV accounts for about one-fifth of all maternal deaths.

For more ideas how to explore go to the How to Visualize tab.

Data Visualization

How to ExploreData StoriesTerms Defined

Click the 'Data' button to choose different indicators to view (i.e., switch between Mean Deaths and Maternal Education).
Hit the right arrow button in the bottom right-hand corner to watch the map and table change over time.
Click a range on the left legend to view all countries on the map that fall within that interval.
Zoom in and out of the map by using the plus and minus signs.
Right click anywhere on the visualization to view additional interactive options, such as adding text boxes or shapes.
By right clicking, you can also print the current visualization with your custom additions (i.e., your current zoom settings, any text you added, or shapes).
For more information on interactive capabilities, click the 'Help' button.

See how different the trend in maternal mortality in sub-Saharan Africa would be over the past three decades without the HIV epidemic. Click on the “Data” button and choose “MMR,” which stands for maternal mortality ratio. Then scroll down and choose 1980. Hit the “+” button once so that the screen zooms in to Africa. Then hit the play button on the bottom right near “2008.” You will see how through the 1980s sub-Saharan African countries saw pockets of improvement, seen by the lighter colors on the map, but beginning in the early 1990s, most countries started to darken, indicating a rising MMR. Zimbabwe went from 218 maternal deaths for every 100,000 live births to 189 by 1985. Over the next 23 years, though, the MMR more than tripled to 624. If you go back to the “Data” button and follow the same steps after choosing “MMR no HIV,” you will see Zimbabwe drop from a ratio of 211 to an MMR of 114. Other countries would have had similar success, underscoring the need to make HIV prevention and treatment a standard part of prenatal care in some countries.

Watch the total fertility rate, a key driver of maternal mortality, fall in most countries, beginning in 1980. Under “Data,” choose “Total Fertility Rate” and “1980.” Then hit play. You will see countries such as Mexico, India, Pakistan, and Egypt nearly cut their fertility rate in half. Mexico went from 4.70 average number of children for every woman in the country to 2.19. Countries with stronger economies have lowered their fertility rates, too. Spain saw its fertility rate fall from 2.24 to 1.44.

MMR: Maternal mortality ratio (number of maternal deaths per 100,000 live births)

GDP: Gross domestic product per capita

Total fertility rate: Average number of children that a woman would have over her lifetime, if exposed to current age-specific fertility rates

Skilled birth attendance: Fraction of births attended by a doctor, nurse, or midwife

Maternal mortality in relation to GDP, education, neonatal mortality, skilled birth attendance, and total fertility rate by country and mapped over time (Global), 1980-2008

Data Visualization

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