The health of women and children are critical for global development. However, information and data on measuring countries’ progress are limited given the variety of methodological challenges of measuring care around the time of birth, when most maternal and neonatal deaths, stillbirths, and morbidities occur. To achieve the ambitious goals outlined in the Sustainable Development Goals and to achieve universal health coverage, quality data on births, deaths, causes of deaths, and coverage of life-saving maternal and newborn health interventions are critical.

The maternal and newborn health module of the  Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent health and Ageing Data Portal  stores and displays country, regional and global data on important maternal and newborns health indicators.

To improve maternal and newborn health measurement globally and at country level, WHO has established the  Mother and Newborn Information for Tracking Outcomes and Results (MoNITOR), a technical advisory group to WHO. The vision of MoNITOR is to facilitate maternal and newborn measurement, align initiatives, and provide technical guidance to WHO. Ultimately, MoNITOR will support WHO to ensure harmonized measurement messages, guidance and tools so that countries can collect useful data to track progress toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and other global targets.