Nigeria is one of the largest contributors to maternal and newborn (neonatal) deaths in the world. It’s estimated that in 2017 the country accounted for more than 20% of the global deaths of women due to complications of pregnancy and childbirth. In 2018, the maternal death rate was 512 per 100,000 live births while death of babies within the first four weeks of life was 39 per 1,000 live births.
These rates are among the highest in sub-Saharan Africa. A recent Lancet Commission noted that the country has failed to deliver equitable and favourable health outcomes for its people. One of the reasons is the absence of robust data on the leading causes of deaths to identify areas where improvements can be made. Data are important because resolving a problem starts with knowing how big it is.
