A Bold Solution to a Maternal Health Crisis in Sierra Leone

No woman should die giving birth. With your support, we can work to ensure that every pregnant woman can look forward to childbirth as a moment to celebrate, not one to fear.

The Crisis
If the approximately 140 million women who give birth each year received the modern standard of care available in the U.S. today, global maternal deaths would plummet by approximately 95 percent, saving over 250,000 mothers’ lives each year.  

In Sierra Leone, the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) is 354 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births. For comparison, the MMR is 17 in the U.S. and only 10 across high-income countries. Without access to trained staff, proper medicines, and safe facilities, mothers and babies die from things we know how to treat.

Maternal health is a matter of justice.  

The Solution: The Maternal Center of Excellence (MCOE)
Maternal mortality in Sierra Leone is not inevitable. Partners In Health, in partnership with the Ministry of Health, built the Paul E. Farmer Maternal Center of Excellence (MCOE) in Sierra Leone to drive the maternal mortality rate towards zero and prove that most maternal deaths can be prevented, even in marginalized communities. A cutting-edge facility, the MCOE expands the campus of Koidu Government Hospital, dramatically increasing the number of beds, services, and facilities available to mothers and babies.

The MCOE:
• Is a dignified, patient-centered space
• Has already cared for over 6,000 women and delivered over 2,000 babies since opening in February 2026
• Houses three operating theaters and Sierra Leone’s first neonatal intensive care unit (NICU)
• Provides free family planning services
• Offers patients comprehensive support, including food, housing, and transportation
• Will train the next generation of health care workers in Sierra Leone

A facility built for and staffed by Sierra Leoneans, the MCOE is not only an investment in the health of the community, but also in the local economy, medical education, and health infrastructure of Sierra Leone and Kono District. It is accompaniment in action. As we look to the future, we remain humbled by the great task of operating the MCOE for years to come and remain hopeful about creating lasting change.

How You Can Help
Maternal mortality is driven by systems of injustice, and together we are prepared to change those systems. Opening the doors to the MCOE is just the beginning. Ensuring the facility can provide the highest quality care requires continued investment. Your donation, no matter the size, has the power to make a real difference for a woman and her baby:

$15 can provide travel reimbursements to adolescent and young women so they can access prenatal, labor and delivery, and postnatal care.
$30 can provide post-op drugs to one patient at the MCOE
$50 can provide food support for an at-risk mother
$100 can provide all necessary antenatal care visits during a mother's pregnancy
$310 can provide NICU drugs for one patient at the MCOE
$1k can supply a month’s supply of newborn diapers

Partners in Health will use your gift where it is needed most, providing essential supplies and services like those listed above. By working with the local community and ministry of health, we will ensure the MCOE not only improves maternal and newborn health but bends the arc of history towards health justice for all.