§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department is taking to meet the Millennium Development Goal to reduce the level of maternal mortality among mothers in childbirth in developing countries, with particular reference to Africa. [136278]
§ Hilary BennThe Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are central to DFID's work, including the goal to improve maternal health, and its associated target of reducing the maternal mortality ratio (the number of maternal deaths per 100,000 live births) by 75 per cent. between 1990 and 2015. Our Public Service Agreement includes ambitious targets on increasing access in Africa and Asia to skilled attendance at childbirth. Skilled attendance is an important contributor to safe childbirth and serves as an internationally agreed proxy indicator of progress towards the maternal health MDG, trends in maternal mortality being notoriously difficult to assess directly. DFID's strategy includes advocacy in the international arena, support to countries to strengthen health systems and improve access to maternal and reproductive health services, and support for research and improved measurement tools. DFID is participating in a new international partnership for Safe Motherhood and Newborn Health.
Sub-Saharan Africa bears a disproportionate burden of maternal mortality. In 2000, there were approximately 247,000 maternal deaths in sub-Saharan Africa, almost half the 529,000 deaths worldwide. We support the maternal health strategies of African countries through health sector budget support, through safe motherhood projects, for example in Kenya and Malawi, and indirectly through general budget support. Since 1997 we have committed approximately £0.5 billion to health systems strengthening in Africa. We also fund international multilateral agencies and international NGOs active in supporting maternal health programmes in Africa.