Every Woman Every Newborn EverywherE
Healthy Futures

Country action

Zimbabwe

Photo © 2020 UNICEF/ Karel Prinsloo
Twenty year old pregnant Zanle Chisa get a check up at the Tanganda Rural Health Centre near Mutare, Zimbabwe, Feb, 5, 2020 .

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Every Woman Every Newborn in Zimbabwe

Download the full profile with additional key demographics, progress against milestones, and more.

This profile was developed in May 2023, using data from 2018-2023.

Photo © 2013 UNICEF/ Jordi Matas
In April 2013 in Zimbabwe, a woman and her infant await care at the Madamombe rural health centre in Chivi District, Masvingo Province.

MNH Acceleration Plan highlights

In 2026, the priorities in Zimbabwe’s MNH Acceleration Plan include:

Focus on the subnational level with subnational plans and targets derived from the reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health national strategy.
Improve quality of care with quality improvement processes and indicators across maternal and newborn care, the implementation of emergency obstetric and newborn care signal functions at all levels of the health system and competency based support to health workers.
Strengthen data systems by using data from the local level and support private sector reporting.
Prepare for shocks (financial, epidemics, climate-related).

©UNICEF/Quarmyne.

National mortality targets

Maternal mortality ratio

240 per 100,000 live births by 2025

Stillbirth
rate

No data

Neonatal mortality rate

20 per 1,000 live births by 2025

Progress to meet the national maternal, newborn mortality and stillbirth reduction targets

Photo © 2013 UNICEF/ Jordi Matas
In April 2013 in Zimbabwe, a young woman, holding her infant, recovers in a maternity ward the day after giving birth, in Chivi District, Masvingo Province.

Progress to meet Every Woman Every Newborn Everywhere coverage targets

Photo © 2011 UNICEF/ Giacomo Pirozzi
2011, A health worker checks blood pressure of a pregnant woman at Neshuro District Hospital in Mwenezi, some 150km from the town of Masvingo(south of Zimbabwe). UNICEF supports maternal and child health care including PMTCT at the hospital.

Quality of care in Zimbabwe

As part of its efforts to reduce maternal and newborn mortality and stillbirths, Zimbabwe is taking steps to improve the quality of maternal and newborn health. These include:

National Health Sector Quality Framework is operationalized, guided by local evidence on priority drivers of quality of care failures.
Community engagement and social accountability on Maternal and perinatal death surveillance and response (MPDSR) is improved, building on the implementation of the National Community Health Strategy.

News and events

Lessons to end postpartum hemorrhage

June 10, 2026

First webinar in a four-part series sharing lessons from the Accelerating Measurable Progress and Leveraging Investments for Postpartum Hemorrhage Impact (AMPLI-PPHI) project. Organized by Jhpiego.

Accelerating the reduction of maternal, newborn and child mortality – Progress to date and action for 2030

May 15, 2026

An event during the WHA79 to share high-level messages from the EWENE-Child Survival Action progress report.

Power in partnership: Unlocking sustainable financing for reproductive, maternal and newborn health commodities.

May 15, 2026

A reception during WHA79

Resources

See also: ‘eMPDNS: From Paper to Real-Time Action: Leveraging Digital
Technology to Prevent Avoidable Maternal and Perinatal Deaths’, the poster that the Zimbabwe delegation presented at the International Maternal Newborn Health Conference 2026.