WaterAid Australia has launched its ‘Time to Deliver’ maternal health campaign, to expose the realities of the world’s least developed countries where a woman gives birth every two seconds without clean water.
To mark the International Day of the Midwife, the campaign draws on photography, filmed interviews, and newly released global case studies spanning 13 countries, including Ethiopia, Malawi, Australia, Japan, Ghana, the UK, and Canada. They capture the experiences of women, mothers, and healthcare workers preparing for childbirth in vastly different conditions.
Australia has played a key role in elevating the campaign, with early engagement from media, health advocates and digitally engaged audiences.
The campaign highlights a devastating inequality. While the universality of motherhood shines through in commonly packed items such as baby clothes, blankets and water bottles or vessels, the contents of each bag offer an insight into the delivery room that awaits.
Globally, a woman gives birth every two seconds without adequate water, sanitation and hygiene. This exposes more than 16 million women each year to preventable, life threatening infections, complications and even death for mothers and newborns. In some settings, women must bring buckets to collect water, razor blades to cut umbilical cords, and plastic sheets, bleach and soap as essential safeguards against infection.
In contrast, Australian maternity bags typically include essentials such as baby clothing, breast pads and personal care items, prepared with the expectation that clean water and safe, hygienic healthcare environments are a given.
WaterAid is inviting mothers to share what they pack and why, revealing both the universality of motherhood and the unequal realities of birth across the world.
Australian and global creator and influencer content will also support the campaign, including Pediatrician, Dr. Golly & Tully Smyth. WaterAid Australia has called on the public to join the movement and help ensure every mother, everywhere, can give birth safely.
WaterAid Australia’s CEO Tom Muller said: “This campaign highlights a critical truth: access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene is fundamental to safe childbirth, yet for too many women it remains out of reach.”
“In one in five health facilities, the absence of these basics means midwives cannot wash their hands or properly sterilise equipment, putting both mothers and newborns at serious risk. As a result, women are forced to bring their own water, disinfectant or protective materials just to give birth safely. No woman’s chance of a healthy delivery should depend on whether these essential services are available.” Muller added.
Ahead of the UN Water Conference in December, WaterAid is calling on governments and the public to act now.
