Bamako, Mali
Africa is the worst continent to be a mother in, according to a Save the Children analysis released this week. For its annual State of the World’s Mothers report, the group evaluated 110 countries based on maternal deaths during childbirth, availability of contraception, adult literacy, and other factors. Of the 10 lowest-scoring countries, seven were in Africa. Mali was the worst of all, with one in 10 women dying in childbirth. “Conditions for children and mothers in the bottom-ranked countries are devastating,” said Charles MacCormack, president of Save the Children. In Burkina Faso, more than 90 percent of women are illiterate. In Ethiopia, 75 percent of mothers lack access to clean water.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Air strikes in the Caribbean: Trump’s murky narco-warTalking Point Drug cartels ‘don’t follow Marquess of Queensberry Rules’, but US military air strikes on speedboats rely on strained interpretation of ‘invasion’
-
A tour of Sri Lanka’s beautiful northThe Week Recommends ‘Less frenetic’ than the south, this region is full of beautiful wildlife, historical sites and resorts
-
Crossword: September 14, 2025The Week's daily crossword puzzle
