Experts agree that maternal deaths could be prevented if women had access to basic medical care during pregnancy, delivery and immediately after childbirth.

The WHO estimates that this would cost about $3 per person in low-income countries. But it can only take place if there is a change in some cultural attitudes that prevent women from receiving care during pregency and childbirth.

Aspects of care that are highlighted as most important are:

• Providing a health professional at the birth to ensure hygiene during labour and delivery. At the moment a doctor or a midwife is present in around 53% of births in developing countries.

• What women really need providing care immediately after birth, during the "post-partum" period. This period is the time that most maternal deaths occur. In very poor regions only around 5% of women receive care during this period, compared to around 90% of women in the developed world.

• Improved access to better antenatal care. Medical care during pregnancy allows the early detection of potential problems and the treatment of complications. In developed countries 97% of women receive antenatal care. In Africa the figure is 63% and in Asia 65%. Often services are available but they are just not used because they may cost money or be located a long distance away. Women may also be too busy or the poor quality of service may make the woman reluctant to use it.

• Education programmes providing family planning information and safe abortion services. Persuading women to delay the age at which they have children is also important. Women who give birth in their teens are twice as likely to die from childbirth as women in their twenties.