This Mother's Day, Give an Inspired Gift

This Sunday is Mother’s Day. But sadly, for many women around the world, the joy of motherhood is engulfed by tragedy. Maternal mortality is a major preventable cause of death, and UNICEF and partners are using simple, low-cost interventions to save pregnant women’s lives. One of the most effective tools is a birthing kit. This Mother’s Day, you can honor a mother by giving an Inspired Gift of a Safe Birthing Kit, which helps safely deliver 50 babies. And through Sunday, every purchase you make of an Inspired Gift online will be matched dollar for dollar.
Through Sunday, give anInspired Giftfor Mother’s Day and your purchase will be matched dollar-for-dollar. This Sunday is Mother’s Day—a day of love and remembrance, a day to honor and celebrate mothers everywhere. Sadly, for many women around the world, the joy of motherhood is engulfed by tragedy.
A mother in Bangladesh with her child A mother in Bangladesh with her child. © UNICEF/BANA2013-00460/Habibul Haque

Maternal mortality is a major preventable cause of death. Some 287,000 women die needlessly every year from complications related to pregnancy or childbirth. And developing countries account for 99 percent of those deaths. Indeed, maternal mortality accounts for the biggest health gap between developed and developing countries. In the U.S., there are 21 maternal deaths for every 100,000 live births—in Somalia, 1,000 women die per 100,000 births (the U.S. is still far behind countries like Sweden, which only counts 4 deaths per 100,000 births). The good news is that maternal mortality is declining—down from 500,000 deaths per year in 1990—and that these deaths are fairly easy to prevent. UNICEF and partners are using simple, low-cost interventions to save pregnant women’s lives. One of the most effective tools is a birthing kit, which contains drugs and supplies, medical equipment and basic sterilization and resuscitation equipment. This Mother’s Day, you can honor a mother by giving an Inspired Gift of a Safe Birthing Kit, which helps safely deliver 50 babies. In addition, through Sunday, every purchase you make of an Inspired Gift online will be matched dollar for dollar. On this special day, a gift for a mother can help save another’s life. To purchase an Inspired Gift for Mother's Day, visit our Inspired Gifts site.