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Worldwide, postpartum haemorrhage accounts for 34% of all maternal deaths and unsafe abortion accounts for 9%.
In other words, 34 out of 100 women who die from any cause related to a pregnancy, die because of excessive heavy bleeding after childbirth, while 9 out of these 100 women die because of an unsafe abortion.
Around the world there are as many unsafe abortions as safe abortions conducted. In many regions there are more unsafe abortions than safe, as you can see in the table below.
| Region | Percentage of abortions that are unsafe** |
|---|---|
| Africa | 97% |
| Latin American & Caribbean | 95% |
| South Asia | 65% |
| South East Asia | 61% |
| Global | 50% |
Source: Countdown to 2015 Decade Report (http://www.who.int/pmnch/knowledge/topics/2010countdown_decadereport/en/)
** Source: The Lancet, (G Sedgh et al. WHO and Guttmacher analysis of incidence of induced abortion, 1995 to 2008. Lancet, 2012, 379:9816, 625‐632)