Many unwanted pregnancies
According to a report by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), around 89 million pregnancies in developing countries are unwanted every year. This corresponds to around 43 percent of all pregnancies. Reasons are often lack of access to education and contraception as well as a lack of equal rights and sexual violence.
According to UNFPA, women and girls affected by poverty have three times as many children in the course of their lives as rich women and girls. One reason is lack of access to modern contraceptive methods. An equally big problem is lack of information: women and girls in developing countries often do not know how they can protect themselves from an unwanted pregnancy. Even if they want to use contraception, they have no chance of doing so.
According to a UNFPA World Population Report, unwanted pregnancies are often an expression of powerlessness, poverty and external pressure exerted by partners, peers or communities. The lack of equal rights between men and women and strongly patriarchal structures lead to a lack of sexual self-determination for women and girls. Also rape leads to unwanted pregnancies.
Many early pregnancies - often before the 18th birthday
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 16 million girls between the ages of 15 and 19 give birth every year, almost 95% of whom live in developing countries. In many parts of the world, girls become pregnant before or shortly after the onset of puberty - with devastating consequences.
High health risk for young expectant mothers
The younger the expectant mother, the greater the risk of health problems arising from the pregnancy. This is because the bodies of young girls are not yet designed for pregnancy or the associated stress. As a result, complications are more likely to occur during pregnancy or childbirth.
Higher risk for the unborn baby
Early pregnancy is not only a risk for the expectant mothers. It is also a risk for the (unborn) baby: Babies of very young girls are often born underweight or premature. The infant mortality rate for young mothers is therefore 50 percent higher than for babies born to women between 20 and 30 years old.
No prospect of a better future
Early pregnancies of girls living in poverty not only entail a health risk for mother and baby. The young girls also lose their chance of education. Early pregnancy often denies them access to the labor market and the chance of an independent, self-determined life.
Higher risk of dying as a result of pregnancy and childbirth
Although maternal mortality is falling worldwide, too many women still die in childbirth or immediately afterwards. Most of these deaths are preventable. The main reason is the lack of medical care before, during and after childbirth: in countries affected by poverty, most women give birth without the help of a doctor or midwife. If complications arise during birth, this can be life-threatening for mother and child. In most cases, the journey to the next hospital is too far for mother and child to be cared for in time.
Also lack of follow-up care for mothers (and babies) omakes pregnancy dangerous for expectant mothers in developing countries.
Pregnancy care
Worldwide, one woman dies every minute as a result of pregnancy or childbirth. This happens because many women give birth to their children alone, often in unhygienic conditions. In our projects, we therefore accompany expectant mothers through their pregnancy. Only 50 francs are needed to safely care for mother and child.
