Skilled attendant at birth 2006 updates

This factsheet, published by the World Health Organization, reports the latest data on the proportion of births attended by skilled health personnel, for countries, regions and sub-regions. Along with maternal mortality rates, this data is used as an indicator of progress towards the fifth Millennium Development Goal, which aims to improve maternal health. The paper notes that skilled attendant at birth data are widely accepted as the most relevant indicator, as they are easier to collect than maternal mortality data and the presence of skilled care at delivery has been shown to correlate with declining maternal mortality.

The factsheet reports that world-wide, 61.5 per cent of births were attended by a skilled health worker. Although virtually all births were attended by skilled health personnel in more developed countries, this proportion is 57 per cent in less developed countries and only 34 per cent in the least developed countries. In Africa and Asia, only 47 and 58 per cent, respectively, of women gave birth with professional assistance. The lowest levels of skilled attendant at birth were in Eastern Africa, South-Central Asia, and Western Africa. Africa and Asia are furthest away from the target of 80 per cent by 2005, and the factsheet argues that special efforts are needed to accelerate the slow progress in these regions.