Bangladesh is a classic case of a low- and middle-income country achieving the unachievable which many others failed to. It reduced its maternal mortality by 66 per cent between 1990 and 2010; the reduction was 40 per cent between 2001 and 2010 alone. These were achieved by lowering the maternal mortality rate (the number of maternal deaths per 100,000 live births) from 574 to 194 during the period 1990 to 2010. The reduction was substantial even in a short span of eight years (1990 to 1998) — 574 to 322 per 100,000 live births. As per the 2012 WHO estimates, the average annual rate of decrease was 5.9 per cent during the period 1990 to 2010, which is more than the Millennium Development Goal 5 target of 5.5 per cent or more. What is more surprising is that the reduction in MMR (maternal deaths per 100,000 live births) was almost the same in both the urban and rural areas. At the current rate of (MMR) reduction, Bangladesh is well on its way to reaching the MDG 5 target of 143 per 100,000 live births this year — a year ahead of schedule. India too reduced maternal mortality by 65 per cent from 569 to 190 per 100,000 live births between 1990 and 2013. Yet, with only 4.5 per cent annual reduction in MMR, India is bound to miss the MDG 5 target of 5.5 per cent or more decrease rate before 2015.

Click Here To Read More