GFF Roadmap for improved stillbirth reporting and response

Why is counting stillbirths important for Global Financing Facility (GFF)-supported countries?

Each year, globally, nearly 2 million pregnancies result in stillbirths. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a significant increase in stillbirths.

The Every Newborn Action Plan (ENAP), led by the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF and endorsed by 194 WHO member states, calls for each country to achieve a rate of 12 stillbirths or fewer per 1,000 total births by 203 (2). Almost all 37 GFF-supported countries1 are off track to reach their stillbirth targets of 12 stillbirths or fewer per 1,000 total births, translating into about half a million lives lost.

Most stillbirths are preventable, and high stillbirth rates are a marker of low access and coverage of quality antenatal and intrapartum care. Notably, 42% of stillbirths occur between the onset of labor and birth (1). This percentage is even higher in sub- Saharan Africa and Central and Southern Asia, where about half of all stillbirths occur during the intrapartum period.

Intrapartum stillbirth is a tragedy since timely interventions could have prevented a majority of these deaths. For too long, stillbirths have not been included when assessing the impact of poor quality antenatal and intrapartum care. Stillbirths have received less attention as a public health issue than neonatal, under-five mortality, and maternal mortality: During the past two decades, the annual rates
of reduction of stillbirths have been much smaller than reductions in neonatal deaths, deaths among children ages 1-59 months, and maternal deaths.[…]