UNFPA and Partners Launch Midwifery Accelerator to Confront Maternal Health Crisis

New initiative unveiled at CPD58 on World Health Day aims to reverse preventable deaths and invest in frontline care

New York, 7 April 2025 – On World Health Day, and at the opening of the 58th Session of the Commission on Population and Development (CPD58), UNFPA, the UN sexual and reproductive health agency, and global partners launched the Midwifery Accelerator — a coordinated effort to reduce preventable maternal deaths by expanding access to quality care provided by midwives.

The launch comes as new UN data confirms that 260,000 women died from pregnancy or childbirth in 2023 — one every two minutes. While this represents a 40% drop since 2000, progress has slowed and remains highly unequal, particularly in fragile and conflict-affected settings.

"We can and must end preventable maternal deaths," said Dr. Natalia Kanem, Executive Director of UNFPA. “We have the knowledge and tools to ensure safe births. We now need to step up what works: skilled midwives, quality care, and strong political commitment. This new initiative is about delivering on all three with the urgency they deserve.”

Co-led by UNFPA, WHO, UNICEF, International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) and Jhpiego, and developed with governments, civil society and technical partners, the Midwifery Accelerator provides a clear roadmap for action. It aims to train more midwives, deploy them where they’re most needed, and ensure they are well-equipped, supported and integrated into national health systems. In short, it puts midwives at the center of building stronger, more equitable and resilient health systems to improve the health and wellbeing outcomes for women and their newborns.

UNFPA has long been a global leader in this space, championing midwife-led care as a cornerstone of maternal health. Since 2008, UNFPA has supported over 120 countries to strengthen their midwifery workforce, from education and midwifery schools to workforce development and deployment. Over 600,000 midwives have been trained with UNFPA’s support, helping bring life-saving care closer to women and communities.

Progress is being seen across the world. Tanzania has reduced maternal deaths by 52%, and Sierra Leone by 79% — clear proof that investments and political will can save lives. In both these countries, midwives play a key role in improving maternal and newborn health outcomes. But these gains are fragile. With massive global funding cuts threatening essential services, countries risk losing hard-won progress.

Despite the growing need, midwives remain underfunded, under-paid, undervalued and not adequately deployed. Yet universal access to midwives could prevent over 60% of maternal and newborn deaths and stillbirths — and every dollar invested in midwifery has the potential of yielding up to a 16-fold return in health and economic benefits, as a study from Morocco shows.

“This plan puts midwives at the heart of the solution,” said Julia Bunting, Director of Programmes at UNFPA. “Now is the time for governments and donors to step up. Without investing in midwives, we cannot end preventable maternal deaths.”

For more information: 

Zina Alam | zialam@unfpa.org; media@unfpa.org 

About the Midwifery Accelerator
Launched by UNFPA, WHO, UNICEF, ICM, and Jhpiego, the global Midwifery Accelerator is a shared framework to support countries in integrating midwifery models of care into national health systems. The initiative was informed by country consultations in six high-burden countries (Bangladesh, Cote D’Ivoire, Nepal, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and Zambia) and reflects key priority areas that need to be addressed through accelerated actions to improve global availability of and access to quality midwifery care.

Learn more: www.unfpa.org/midwifery

About UNFPA
UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, works in over 150 countries and territories to deliver a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe, and every young person’s potential is fulfilled.