Realising equity in maternal health: China's successes and challenges

China has made remarkable progress in maternal and child health since the 1990s. Mortality among children younger than 5 years dropped from 54·1 deaths per 1000 livebirths in 1990 to 12·5 per 1000 livebirths in 2015,1 meeting the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 4 well ahead of schedule. Additionally, the maternal mortality ratio declined from 111·0 deaths per 100 000 livebirths in 1990 to 21·8 per 100 000 livebirths in 2015,1 achieving MDG 5 on target. China has also met the target for reducing the number of maternal deaths in Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3, but the challenge of improving equity remains.