LBS research in action: Reducing infant and maternal mortality in sub-Saharan Africa

According to the United Nations agencies, a woman dies every two minutes due to pregnancy or childbirth. In 2020, about 70% of all maternal deaths were in sub- Saharan Africa.  

In its rural parts where maternal and infant mortality rates are highest, Maternity Waiting Homes are supporting the most isolated and vulnerable mothers-to-be. But despite their benefits, only 54% of eligible women end up using them and in some regions, these facilities are dangerously overcrowded due to inadequate logistical and resource allocation planning. 

Jérémie Gallien, Professor of Management Science and Operations at London Business School, is working to tackle this logistics problem and improve the odds for newborns and mothers. Professor Gallien’s most recent work, with his LBS colleague George Chen and their PhD student Yuhang Du, has brought him into partnership with the Ministry of Health of Liberia. Using mathematical analysis, Jérémie and his collaborators have developed a simple cost-effective maternity risk assessment wheel. Health professionals can use the wheel to help pregnant women make better-informed decisions about care arrangements based on individual risk. 

They have also developed a mathematical model and mapping tool to maximise the positive impact of Maternity Waiting Homes. The model gives policymakers a clearer understanding of the different levels of demand per location, so they can make informed choices on capacity decisions, staffing and travel advice for pregnant women. 

These new resources should help significantly reduce the likelihood of unassisted births and therefore infant mortality in rural Liberia, and potentially wider West Africa and beyond. 

Research at this scale wouldn’t be possible without undertaking fieldwork, developing local capacity and rigorous data collection, which is especially challenging due to a lack of infrastructure in the region.

Your support towards research at London Business School has enabled Professor Gallien and his team to do so and contribute to the reduction in infant and maternal mortality, as per the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 3. 

You can read more about Professor Gallien’s research into reducing infant mortality in sub-Saharan Africa on the LBS website.