Sovereign and dependent territory rows of the World Bank maternal mortality ratio (modeled estimate, per 100,000 live births), top 30 by the latest value. The indicator counts maternal deaths during pregnancy or within 42 days after its end from causes related to or aggravated by pregnancy or its management. Aggregates (region.id === “NA”) are excluded.
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How to use this chart
Play/Pause starts and stops the year-by-year animation, the year slider jumps to any year, and the speed selector (0.5×, 1×, 2×) changes playback speed. Each year shows the top 12 entries out of the 30 held in the dataset.
About this ranking
About this metric. This ranking reformats World Bank indicator SH.STA.MMRT. It measures maternal deaths during pregnancy or within 42 days after its end from causes related to or aggravated by pregnancy or its management, per 100,000 live births. The values are inter-agency modelled estimates designed for comparison across countries.
What to watch. This race runs in reverse: shorter bars and falling ranks mean improvement. South Sudan falls from 3,845 in 1985 to 692 in 2023, Eritrea from 1,678 to 291, and the 30-country average from 1,183 to 437.77. Watch value changes separately from rank changes.
Caveats. These are not simple counts from complete registration systems. UN agencies combine civil registration, surveys, censuses and models, and historical values may be revised when methods or inputs change. The table also keeps only the 30 countries with the highest 2023 values, so low-mortality countries do not appear.
Trends in the data
Nigeria leads in 2023 at 993 deaths per 100,000 live births, followed by Chad at 748, the Central African Republic and South Sudan at 692, and Liberia at 628. Nigeria’s value is roughly one maternal death per 101 live births; even the 30th country, the Republic of the Congo at 241, is about one per 415. These are the countries at the high end, not a cross-section of the whole world.
The long decline is substantial. The mean for the selected 30 falls from 1,183 in 1985 to 1,123.87 in 1990, 812.53 in 2000, 683.77 in 2010, 503.57 in 2020 and 437.77 in 2023, a 63% reduction over 38 years. From 2000 to 2023 alone, the decline is about 46%, evidence that improvement reached many of today’s highest-burden countries.
The largest absolute fall is South Sudan’s 3,153-point drop, to 18% of its 1985 level. Afghanistan falls from 2,232 to 521, Eritrea from 1,678 to 291, and Guinea-Bissau from 1,851 to 505. Eritrea drops from fifth to 24th and Sierra Leone from sixth to 20th. Falling in this ranking means improving faster than other high-burden countries.
Progress is uneven. Nigeria declines only 26%, from 1,344 to 993, and rises from tenth to first. Chad moves from 14th to second despite falling from 1,119 to 748, while the Central African Republic moves from 22nd to third after only a small net decline, 796 to 692. A country can improve in absolute terms and still climb when its peers improve faster.
Nauru is the exception, rising from 191 in 1985 to 273 in 2023 and from 30th to 26th. With very small populations and few births, a handful of deaths or a model revision moves a per-100,000 rate sharply. The Central African Republic also swings from 796 in 1985 to 1,490 in 2000 and 1,296 in 2020 before reaching 692. Read the long slope rather than any single year.
Trivia quiz
How long after the end of pregnancy can a death still meet the maternal-death definition?
Less than 42 days. The cause must be related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its management; accidental or incidental causes are excluded. (Source)
What global maternal-mortality target does SDG 3.1 set for 2030?
Reduce the global maternal mortality ratio to below 70 deaths per 100,000 live births. (Source)
Which direct causes does WHO identify as major drivers of maternal deaths?
Severe bleeding, mostly after childbirth; infections; and high blood pressure during pregnancy. Skilled care can prevent or treat many of them. (Source)
Source
World Bank — Maternal mortality ratio (modeled estimate, per 100,000 live births) (SH.STA.MMRT)