Kathmandu, March 5:

A regional report of the World Bank has stated that poor reproductive health among poor women was a major contributor to mortality in South Asia.

The report — Sparing Lives, Better Reproductive Health for Poor Women in South Asia — was launched here today. The report includes the findings of studies carried out in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

It mentions that poor women has substantially worse reproductive health. It also stated that some countries would not be able to achieve the Millennium Development Goal related to maternal and child health unless attention is paid specifically towards poor women’s reproductive health.

The report identified gender discrimination, early childbearing, poor nutrition, high fertility, poor awareness of health and low access to quality health services as the major risks faced by poor women in South Asia.

It stated that women’s low education and poverty were consistently associated with low use of reproductive health services and poor outcomes. It emphasised on the need to provide a complete essential package of reproductive health service to women.