Saving Lives at Birth

The Problem

Currently, more than 40 percent of maternal and newborn deaths and stillbirths occur on the day of birth, and newborn mortality rates account for 44 percent of all under-five child deaths. Further, virtually all of the 303,000 maternal deaths, 2.7 million newborn deaths, and 2.6 million stillbirths that occur each year happen in low- and middle-income countries. Given this staggering challenge, a strong and focused effort to enhance maternal and newborn health will be crucial to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

Our Approach

The Saving Lives at Birth program seeks to overcome these challenges by supporting the development and transition-to-scale of groundbreaking innovations in low and middle-income countries that accelerate substantial and sustainable progress against maternal and newborn deaths and in the prevention of stillbirths. Saving Lives at Birth seeks innovative solutions that are affordable, accessible, sustainable and of high quality across three focus areas: science and technology, service delivery, and demand creation.