Maternal mortality ratio (UN MMEIG) in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: Maternal mortality ratio (UN MMEIG) was 191.84 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2020. ▼ Falling
Latest (2020)
191.84 deaths per 100,000 live births
Change on year
up 1.1%
World rank
47th
of 185 countries
All-time high
354.25 deaths per 100,000 live births
in 1985
All-time low
189.82 deaths per 100,000 live births
in 2019
Years of data
36
1985–2020
Maternal mortality ratio in Papua New Guinea, 1985–2020
Source: UN MMEIG (2023) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in deaths per 100,000 live births.
Analysis
Papua New Guinea recorded 191.84 deaths per 100,000 live births for maternal mortality ratio in 2020.
That represents a change of up 1.1% on the previous year and down 33.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, maternal mortality ratio in Papua New Guinea peaked at 354.25 deaths per 100,000 live births in 1985 and was at its lowest, 189.82 deaths per 100,000 live births, in 2019.
That places Papua New Guinea 47th out of 185 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 36 years of available data.
Maternal mortality ratio (UN MMEIG) in Papua New Guinea, year by year
| Year | deaths per 100,000 live births | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 354.25 deaths per 100,000 live births | — |
| 1986 | 350.26 deaths per 100,000 live births | -1.1% |
| 1987 | 344.78 deaths per 100,000 live births | -1.6% |
| 1988 | 344.48 deaths per 100,000 live births | -0.1% |
| 1989 | 341.64 deaths per 100,000 live births | -0.8% |
| 1990 | 334.87 deaths per 100,000 live births | -2.0% |
| 1991 | 333.29 deaths per 100,000 live births | -0.5% |
| 1992 | 322.57 deaths per 100,000 live births | -3.2% |
| 1993 | 298.13 deaths per 100,000 live births | -7.6% |
| 1994 | 291.93 deaths per 100,000 live births | -2.1% |
| 1995 | 290.72 deaths per 100,000 live births | -0.4% |
| 1996 | 298.91 deaths per 100,000 live births | +2.8% |
| 1997 | 298.72 deaths per 100,000 live births | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 291.41 deaths per 100,000 live births | -2.4% |
| 1999 | 295.48 deaths per 100,000 live births | +1.4% |
| 2000 | 311.86 deaths per 100,000 live births | +5.5% |
| 2001 | 315.86 deaths per 100,000 live births | +1.3% |
| 2002 | 325.43 deaths per 100,000 live births | +3.0% |
| 2003 | 329.03 deaths per 100,000 live births | +1.1% |
| 2004 | 309.74 deaths per 100,000 live births | -5.9% |
| 2005 | 313.77 deaths per 100,000 live births | +1.3% |
| 2006 | 322.95 deaths per 100,000 live births | +2.9% |
| 2007 | 335.64 deaths per 100,000 live births | +3.9% |
| 2008 | 291.57 deaths per 100,000 live births | -13.1% |
| 2009 | 289.23 deaths per 100,000 live births | -0.8% |
| 2010 | 288.9 deaths per 100,000 live births | -0.1% |
| 2011 | 262.31 deaths per 100,000 live births | -9.2% |
| 2012 | 255.29 deaths per 100,000 live births | -2.7% |
| 2013 | 232.91 deaths per 100,000 live births | -8.8% |
| 2014 | 229.29 deaths per 100,000 live births | -1.6% |
| 2015 | 207.55 deaths per 100,000 live births | -9.5% |
| 2016 | 208.9 deaths per 100,000 live births | +0.7% |
| 2017 | 209.79 deaths per 100,000 live births | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 199.06 deaths per 100,000 live births | -5.1% |
| 2019 | 189.82 deaths per 100,000 live births | -4.6% |
| 2020 | 191.84 deaths per 100,000 live births | +1.1% |
Papua New Guinea compared with similar countries
- Papua New Guinea's 191.84 deaths per 100,000 live births is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 191.84 deaths per 100,000 live births, 1.0× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Papua New Guinea's 191.84 deaths per 100,000 live births is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 66.7 deaths per 100,000 live births, 2.9× the median. (26 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 347.08 deaths per 100,000 live births | 341.64 deaths per 100,000 live births | 354.25 deaths per 100,000 live births | 5 |
| 1990s | 305.6 deaths per 100,000 live births | 290.72 deaths per 100,000 live births | 334.87 deaths per 100,000 live births | 10 |
| 2000s | 314.51 deaths per 100,000 live births | 289.23 deaths per 100,000 live births | 335.64 deaths per 100,000 live births | 10 |
| 2010s | 228.38 deaths per 100,000 live births | 189.82 deaths per 100,000 live births | 288.9 deaths per 100,000 live births | 10 |
| 2020s | 191.84 deaths per 100,000 live births | 191.84 deaths per 100,000 live births | 191.84 deaths per 100,000 live births | 1 |
Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea
- 44 Namibia 214.63 deaths per 100,000 live births compare
- 45 Equatorial Guinea 212.33 deaths per 100,000 live births compare
- 46 East Timor 203.92 deaths per 100,000 live births compare
- 48 Botswana 185.9 deaths per 100,000 live births compare
- 49 Yemen 183.4 deaths per 100,000 live births compare
- 50 Myanmar 178.67 deaths per 100,000 live births compare
More health data for Papua New Guinea
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.77 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.3741 % change on previous year (2090)
- Un projection of annual infant deaths 2,501 (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 2 (2023)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 0.27 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0555 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 0.2621 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per capita 0.0594 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is maternal mortality ratio in Papua New Guinea?
- Maternal mortality ratio in Papua New Guinea was 191.84 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2020, according to UN MMEIG (2023) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest maternal mortality ratio recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The highest recorded value was 354.25 deaths per 100,000 live births in 1985.
- What is the lowest maternal mortality ratio recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The lowest recorded value was 189.82 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2019.
- How does Papua New Guinea rank for maternal mortality ratio?
- Papua New Guinea ranks 47th out of 185 countries with data for 2020.
- Is maternal mortality ratio rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 33.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Papua New Guinea data come from?
- The figures come from UN MMEIG (2023) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Maternal mortality ratio. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 36 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
The estimated maternal mortality ratio (MMR) is the number of maternal deaths per 100,000 live births.