According to the authorities, 80 per cent of all women in Southern Sudan give birth at home, without the help of a midwife, and  the region suffers from one of the highest maternal death rates in the world.

Midwives play a critical role in delivering antenatal care for pregnant women and assisting physicians in the process of delivery. UNFPA supports the Government of Uzbekistan in improving maternal health services.

This slideshow with music explores the ways in which the UNFPA mandate can contribute to making a world of 7 Billion successful for everyone.

An excerpt from Article 1, read on 9 July 2011 with photos courtesy of Barbara Davidson/LA Times.  Many challenges lie ahead in South Sudan. One of the poorest countries in the world, its maternal mortality rate is the highest on the planet. UNFPA is helping to train midwives across the country to ensure safe births.

This video was prepared for the 2013 Summit of the Campaign to Reduce Maternal Mortality (CARMMA). It discusses the urgency of giving women the right to choose the number and timing of their children, giving them the confidence that they will not die giving life.

Tuk-tuks (three-wheeled passenger motor vehicles) are helping midwives reach pregnant women in Egypt.

Liya Kebede, WHO Goodwill Ambassador for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health and founder of The Liya Kebede Foundation, appeared at the UN Secretary-Generals Forum on Advancing Global Health in the Face of Crisis

In many parts of the Caribbean and around the world, teenage pregnancy is on the rise. But help is on the way.  In a joint venture with the Government, UNFPA has provided funds to establish nine youth friendly spaces around the country.  Here young people can learn about sexuality and social issues  information which they cant access anywhere else

A new public service announcement stresses the importance of ensuring access to emergency obstetric care & skilled health professionals—especially midwives—to all women to prevent and help ensure treatment for obstetric fistula.

Every year, some 1,000 women are diagnosed with obstetric fistula in Burundi. Sylvie Harerimana was living with the condition for eight years