Northern Nigeria Faces High Maternal Death Rates, Report

Women in northern Nigeria suffer a lot from maternal deaths. The Northwest and Northeast zones make up about three-quarters of deaths recorded in health facilities, according to the 2026 Joint Annual Review (JAR) Statistical Book.

The report shows a big gap in maternal health outcomes between rural and urban areas. Rural women face a maternal mortality ratio of 656 deaths for every 100,000 live births. In urban areas, the ratio is lower at 444 deaths per 100,000 live births.

The Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare produced the report. It looks at the third year of the Health Sector Strategic Blueprint. The ministry shared the findings at the third Nigeria Health Sector Joint Annual Review in Abuja on 10 November.

The report shows ongoing inequalities in maternal healthcare access and outcomes. This is despite a drop in maternal deaths reported across health facilities in the country.

According to the report, Nigeria recorded thousands of maternal deaths in health facilities from January to September 2026. However, these numbers only reflect deaths reported by health facilities.

The ministry noted that these figures may be underreported or overreported. Still, they said the data is reliable for tracking trends in the health sector.

Maternal mortality means a woman dies during pregnancy, childbirth, or within 42 days after pregnancy ends due to causes linked to pregnancy or its management. Most maternal deaths can be stopped with quick access to good antenatal care, skilled birth attendance, emergency obstetric services, and proper postnatal care.

Even with some improvements, Nigeria’s maternal mortality ratio is still a big health issue. The JAR Statistical Book states that the country’s maternal mortality ratio is 572 deaths per 100,000 live births. This is far above the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target of fewer than 70 deaths per 100,000 live births by 2030.

This situation is worrying, given Nigeria’s share of global maternal deaths. In its 2023 report titled “Improving Maternal and Newborn Health and Survival and Reducing Stillbirths: Progress Report 2023”, the World Health Organisation (WHO) estimated that Nigeria had 82,000 maternal deaths, 181,000 stillbirths, and 277,000 neonatal deaths in 2020.

These combined deaths total 540,000, making up 12 percent of all global maternal, stillbirth, and neonatal deaths. This is surprising since Nigeria only accounts for six percent of all live births worldwide. The report places Nigeria second after India among countries with the highest combined burden of maternal deaths, stillbirths, and neonatal deaths.

The JAR data shows a downward trend in maternal deaths reported by health facilities over the review period. The country recorded 5,391 maternal deaths in health facilities in 2024, dropping from 4,455 in 2025.

The number fell even more in 2026, but the final total still needs confirmation. Quarterly data shows improvements. After a peak in the second quarter of 2024, maternal deaths and the maternal mortality ratio generally dropped. By the third quarter of 2026, the maternal mortality ratio had decreased to 128 deaths per 100,000 live births, a roughly 46 percent drop from the earlier peak.

Maternal deaths also fell by about 40 percent to 947 during this period. But these improvements are not spread evenly across the country.

The report says that maternal deaths in the past three years were mostly in the Northwest and Northeast geopolitical zones. By 2026, these two zones made up about three-quarters of all recorded maternal deaths in health facilities.

The five northern states with the highest maternal mortality rates were Kano, Borno, Jigawa, Yobe, and Katsina. While national data shows a downward trend, maternal deaths reportedly rose in these two northern zones. This is in contrast to the reductions seen in southern states.

In most southern states, fewer than 50 maternal deaths were recorded. The states with the lowest numbers included Osun (four deaths), Abia (five), Enugu (eight), Ekiti (nine), and Bayelsa (nine).

The report also points out the issue of maternal morbidity. This includes complications that can affect women’s health and lives long-term. In 2026, around 3,060 women were diagnosed with vesicovaginal fistula (VVF), down from 4,350 in 2025.

VVF is a problem where there is an abnormal opening between the bladder and vagina, causing urine leakage, often after long or blocked labor. Of the women diagnosed in 2026, 1,737 had surgical repairs, which is 56.8 percent of those diagnosed. This is lower than in 2025 when 2,564 women (59 percent) had repairs.

The Northwest and Northeast again had the highest numbers, with 1,420 and 982 cases, respectively, in 2026. These numbers show the need to improve access to emergency obstetric care, timely referrals, and surgical treatment, especially in underserved areas.