Maternal Mortality Ratio
Number of maternal deaths during pregnancy or within 42 days of termination, per 100,000 live births.
Quick Reference
Unit
per 100,000 live births
Category
Health
Metric Code
maternal_mortality_ratio
How It's Calculated
Number of maternal deaths (deaths during pregnancy, childbirth, or within 42 days of pregnancy termination) divided by total live births, multiplied by 100,000. Estimated using vital registration data, special studies, or the WHO/UNICEF/UNFPA/World Bank/UNPD Maternal Mortality Estimation Inter-agency Group (MMEIG) models.
Why It Matters
Maternal mortality is a core human rights indicator reflecting access to quality reproductive healthcare, skilled birth attendance, and emergency obstetric care. Wide disparities between countries reveal inequities in healthcare access. It is SDG Target 3.1 with a global goal of < 70 deaths per 100,000 by 2030.
Understanding the Values
Very Low: < 20 per 100,000 (best performers - Belarus, Italy, Norway) Low: 20-70 (SDG target met - most high-income countries) Medium: 70-200 (needs improvement - many middle-income countries) High: 200-500 (concerning - weak obstetric care) Very High: > 500 (crisis - Chad, South Sudan, Sierra Leone > 1,000) SDG Target 3.1: Reduce to < 70 per 100,000 by 2030 Global average: ~211 per 100,000 (2017)
Related Metrics
Hospital Beds per 1,000 People
Number of hospital beds available per 1,000 population, indicating healthcare infrastructure capacity.
Infant Mortality Rate
Number of deaths of infants under one year old per 1,000 live births.
Physicians per 1,000 People
Number of medical doctors per 1,000 population, measuring healthcare workforce density.
Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Service Coverage Index
Composite index measuring coverage of essential health services, ranging from 0 to 100.
Data Quality & Coverage
Coverage: 217 countries Update frequency: Irregular (WHO updates every 2-3 years) Sources: World Bank, WHO Maternal Mortality Estimation Limitations: Severely underreported in countries without complete death registration. Model-based estimates have wide uncertainty intervals (±30-50%). Classification challenges (was death pregnancy-related?). Excludes late maternal deaths (43-365 days post-pregnancy).