Colombian mothers are dying during childbirth at a rate well beyond what is expected for the nation’s level of development, said the Colombian representative of the United Nation’s Population Fund.
Seventy three mothers die for every 100,000 live births according to official figures, but underreporting has suppressed the true extent of the problem, the representative, Diego Palacios, told Caracol Radio.
Palacios said that the country’s challenge is to improve the quality of services, promote quality emergency care to help women who are in situations of risk.
Colombia’s maternal mortality rate remains well below the 2005 Latin American and Caribbean average of 130 deaths for every 100,000 live births, according to UN statistics. Yet the country’s rate is nearly eight-fold higher than developed nations 2005 average of nine deaths per 100,000 births.