Maternal, Newborn and Child Health

Spotlight Investing in Maternal, Newborn and Child Health - The Case for Asia and the Pacific This document presents a case for investment in maternal, newborn and child health (MNCH) that combines the best available science and economics, based on evidence about what works in practice.

Maternal, Newborn and Child Health
Updated: 21 October 2009

Every year 9.2 million children in the world die before their fifth birthday, as do more than half a million pregnant women. The situation is particularly acute in Asia and the Pacific, whose share of the global total is nearly 41% of the underfives, more than 44% of the mothers and 56% of the newborn babies. Most of these deaths, involving 3.7 million children and over 220,000 women in this region, could be prevented through proven cost-effective interventions.

ADB, as one of the partners of the "Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Network for Asia and the Pacific", is working with countries in this region to make expenditure on maternal, newborn and child health larger, more effective, more efficient, more equitable and more sustainable. The Investment Case - see spotlight - provides analysis and insights into the "best buys" for governments and their development partners through improved public expenditure management and resource allocations.