Africa’s Silent Genocide? WHO Says 178,000 Mothers, 1 Million Newborns Die Yearly from Preventable Causes

In a sobering statement to mark World Health Day 2025, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has raised alarms over Africa’s staggering maternal and newborn death toll, revealing that an estimated 178,000 women and one million infants die each year in the region—most from preventable causes.

Despite progress since 2000, the WHO says Africa is far from reaching the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets for reducing maternal and newborn deaths. At the current pace, the region will fall drastically short, projecting nearly 350 maternal deaths per 100,000 births by 2030—five times the global goal.

“Pregnancy and childbirth remain death sentences for too many women across Africa,” said acting WHO Africa Regional Director, Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu. “And it doesn’t have to be this way.”

The leading causes—haemorrhage, infection, unsafe abortion, and obstructed labour—are largely treatable, but systemic failures including chronic underfunding, poor infrastructure, staff shortages, and conflict continue to undermine maternal care access, especially in rural and crisis-affected zones.

Despite a marked increase in skilled birth attendance—rising from 28% in 2010 to over 80% in more than 60% of countries—the WHO warns that many African nations still lag behind due to health inequality and weak governance.

This year’s World Health Day theme, “Healthy Beginnings, Hopeful Futures,” is a call to action for African governments and global partners to stop the silent maternal and neonatal epidemic that has long plagued the continent.