According to Prof Kofoworola Odeyemi of the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, no fewer than 515,000 expectant mothers die yearly in the country mostly due to poor health care.

She spoke at a lecture entitled: "Save a Woman, Save a Nation" at the Second Yearly Scientific Conference of the Association of General Private Nursing Practitioners of Nigeria (AGPNP).

Mrs Odeyemi deplored the high rate of maternal deaths, saying: "In a developing country like Nigeria, the risk of maternal death is one in 16. While in developed countries, it is one in 2,800. "Every minute one woman dies due to causes related to pregnancy, child birth and postnatal period. "That is 515,000 women, at a minimum, dying every year. About 99 percent of maternal deaths occur in developing world. The health statistics of maternal mortality shows a large disparity between developed and developing countries."

In Ghana, she said they have less than half (210 in 100,000 expectant mothers) of our maternal death rate (545 in 100,000 pregnant women), adding that it is a shame that every time maternal mortality ratio is discussed, Nigeria is always mentioned.
"There are also disparities in the rates between geopolitical zones; maternal death rate is lowest in the south and highest in the northwest due to poor antenatal care. Globally, maternal mortality is mostly concentrated in India, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo," she said. She noted that the common pregnancy complications are haemorrhage, sepsis, toxaemia, abortion, anaemia, malaria and cephalopelvic disproportion. She said: "The high death rate could have been averted since these complications are preventable." 

Prof Odeyemi also listed the ailments, which do not result in deaths, but could be debilitating to maternal health, as chronic anaemia, stress incontinence, vesicovaginal fistula, rectovaginal fistula, chronic pelvic pain, depression and exhaustion. She stressed the reproductive rights of women, saying: "Every woman has the right to attain the highest standard of intimate and reproductive health, and the right to services and information. They should be able to decide freely and responsibly the number, spacing, and timing of their children." ...Source