Sustain, Accelerate, and Innovate Strategies for reducing maternal, newborn, and child mortality

Overview

The South-East Asia Region (SEAR) accounts for 26% of the world’s population including 25% of total annual births. During the MDG era, the region had made unprecedented progress in reducing maternal, newborn and child mortality, and the efforts are being sustained to achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets. As per the 2020-2021 estimates: - Maternal Mortality Ratio: Seven countries have achieved the global target of MMR below 140 per 100,000 live births (BAN, BHU, DPRK, IND, MAL, SRL, THA), while for national level targets (two-third reduction in MMR from the national levels), only 5 countries (BAN, BHU, MMR, NEP, TLS) will achieve the target if current ARR trend continues. - Neonatal Mortality Rate: Five countries (DPR, INO, MAL, SRL, THA) have achieved the neonatal mortality rate (NMR of at least 12 per 1000 live births) target of SDG3, while another 4 countries (BAN, BHU, IND, NEP) are on track to achieve the SDG target by 2030 if the current ARR trend continues. - Under-5 Mortality Rate: Similar to NMR, five countries (DPR, INO, MAL, SRL, THA) have achieved the U5MR target of SDG 3 (U5MR of at least 25 per 1000 live births) while another 4 countries (BAN, BHU, IND, NEP) are on track to achieve their target by 2030 if the current ARR trend continues.

The SEAR has also seen an increase in the average coverage of high-impact, evidence-based interventions across the maternal newborn child health life-course, but the increase has been uneven with large disparities within the countries. Nearly two-thirds of women of reproductive age receive four or more antenatal visits and 90% of births are attended by skilled birth attendants. Close to 80% of women and newborns have postnatal contact with a healthcare provider within two days after birth, but with little data on the subsequent recommended postnatal contacts. Only 45% newborns are breastfed within the first hour after birth, and there is little data on the coverage of other key essential newborn care practices like skin-to-skin contact in the first hour after birth. While more than 75% infants aged 12-23 months are fully immunized, less than two-thirds of infants less than 6 months are exclusively breastfed. The coverage of oral rehydration salts for children with diarrhoea is low while close to 61% of children with suspected pneumonia are taken to an appropriate health provider.