In 2000 at the United Nations Millennium Summit, Canada joined 189 world governments in the commitment to achieve the MDGs, a set of 8 goals aimed at improving the lives of the world’s poorest by 2015.

The Target

Reduce by three quarters, between 1990 and 2015, the maternal mortality ratio and to achieve universal access to reproductive health by 2015

The Facts

Every year, 536,000 women and girls die as a result of complications during pregnancy, childbirth or the six weeks following delivery - 99 percent of these deaths occur in developing countries. Maternal mortality is among the health indicators that show the greatest gap between the rich and the poor — both between countries and within them.  The WHO estimates that unsafe abortions account for about 13% of deaths related to pregnancy.  Estimates show that fewer than half of pregnant women in developing countries receive adequate prenatal care and only 28 in 100 women are attended by trained health personnel during childbirth. Young adolescents are more likely to die or experience complications during pregnancy and childbirth than adult women.

The Opportunity

A full range of sexual and reproductive health services, commodities and information are needed so that women and girls will not be subjected to enduring unsafe health conditions during pregnancy. Furthermore, the empowerment of women and girls, including equal access to education and economic opportunities, as well as equal political participation, are needed to ensure that girls and women can make and carry out informed decision about when and if to have children.

Our Focus

Canada made Maternal and Child Health a banner initiative at the 2010 G8 Summit. But it failed to gather support full G8 support by only coming up with $5 billion dollars of new money as opposed to $20 billion needed for interventions that support maternal, newborn and child health.

Based on a recent poll conducted by 61% of Canadian believe that more money should be spend on international aid with particular focus on child and maternal health.

Most Canadians believe that Canada should be a World leader in pressing the G8 to honour its commitment by investing on women and children and supporting the Financial Transaction Tax. A tiny fee on the trade in financial transactions – paid by banks, not by people –  it would raise billions of dollars for fighting poverty and climate change at home and around the world.