Fifteen years after the first international initiative for safer maternity, nearly 600,000 women - more than one every minute - die each year from complications associated with pregnancy and child birth, and 15 million women remain handicapped for the rest of their lives.
At the same time and for the same reasons, 3 million children die either during birth or their first week of life. More than 98% of these deaths occur in developing countries (DC's), where the rate of maternal mortality is at least 80 times higher than in industrialized countries (IC's).
This dramatic situation is most acute ...
This dramatic situation is most acute in sub-Saharian Africa where the maternal mortality rate is 880 per 100,000 births compared to around 10 in IC's.
In 1996, following the recommendations of IAP, actions against maternal morbidity and mortality in DC's have been launched. Several international meetings were organized (in Canada, France and Italy) and an internet website has been created (www.mother-child.org), linking hospitals, scientists and laboratories. These initiatives now need to be widely extended within the IAP and under the auspices of the newly created IAMP (the InterAcademy Medical Panel, which includes academies of medicine from all over the world), in close connection with international organizations, in particular the World Health Organization.
Therefore, the InterAcademy Panel on International Issues (IAP) recommends to all national leaders that:
We, the undersigned academies of science throughout the world, members of the IAP, are convinced that, in the next two decades, this action, with the support of international authorities, the backing of national ministries concerned and the dedicated efforts of the worldwide scientific and medical community, can lead to significant and essential progress for humanity.
Health of Mother and Child in developing countries: Signatories
Latin American Academy of Sciences Third World Academy of Sciences Albanian Academy of Sciences National Academy of Exact, Physical and Natural Sciences, Argentina Australian Academy of Science Austrian Academy of Sciences Bangladesh Academy of Sciences The Royal Academies for Science and the Arts of Belgium Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina Brazilian Academy of Sciences Cameroon Academy of Sciences The Royal Society of Canada Academia Chilena de Ciencias Chinese Academy of Sciences Academia Sinica, China, Taiwan Colombian Academy of Exact, Physical and Natural Sciences Croatian Academy of Arts and Sciences Cuban Academy of Sciences Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic Academy of Scientific Research and Technology, Egypt Estonian Academy of Sciences The Delegation of the Finnish Academies of Science and Letters Académie des Sciences, France Georgian Academy of Sciences Union of German Academies of Sciences and Humanities Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences Academy of Athens, Greece Academia de Ciencias Medicas, Fisicas y Naturales de Guatemala Hungarian Academy of Sciences Indian National Science Academy Indonesian Academy of Sciences Royal Irish Academy (Acadamh Ríoga na héireann) Kenya National Academy of Sciences Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, Italy Science Council of Japan Royal Scientific Society of Jordan African Academy of Sciences Latvian Academy of Sciences Lithuanian Academy of Sciences Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts Akademi Sains Malaysia Academía Mexicana de Ciencias Academy of Sciences of Moldova Mongolian Academy of Sciences The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences Academy Council of the Royal Society of New Zealand Nigerian Academy of Sciences Norwegian Academy of Sciences and Letters Pakistan Academy of Sciences Palestine Academy for Science and Technology Academia Nacional de Ciencias del Peru National Academy of Science and Technology, Philippines Académie des Sciences et Techniques du Sénégal Singapore National Academy of Sciences Slovak Academy of Sciences Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts Academy of Science of South Africa Royal Academy of Exact, Physical and Natural Sciences of Spain National Academy of Sciences, Sri Lanka Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences Council of the Swiss Scientific Academies Academy of Sciences, Republic of Tajikistan The Caribbean Academy of Sciences Turkish Academy of Sciences The Royal Society, United Kingdom US National Academy of Sciences Academia de Ciencias Físicas, Matemáticas y Naturales de Venezuela