In this major report on midwifery in “resource poor” countries, the UNFPA and its partners make note of three alarming gaps: not only are there not enough midwives, but women can often not access necessary care and, finally, the competencies of midwives need to be upgraded. If these problems are appropriately addressed, an enormous number of stillbirths, newborn deaths and maternal deaths could be avoided. Additionally, the improvement of access to midwives can increase the healthcare for entire communities, which explains its centrality to three Millennium Development Goals (MDG 4, 5 and 6).  

By the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)*

Find the full report here.


Find the executive summary here.





* By the UNFPA in partnership with the University of Southampton and 28 other organizations worldwide. See the full list of contributors here.