Media release

15 October 2025

The New Zealand College of Midwives joins the global call for One Million More Midwives

The New Zealand College of Midwives | Te Kāreti o ngā Kaiwhakawhānau ki Aotearoa is proud to endorse and support the International Confederation of Midwives’ (ICM) global campaign One Million More Midwives, launched on 14 October 2025. This global petition calls on governments and health leaders to grow, support, and sustain the midwifery workforce — and aims to gather one million signatures, one for every midwife the world urgently needs.

Every two minutes, a woman dies from causes related to pregnancy or childbirth. Every 17 seconds, a baby is lost before birth, and each year 2.3 million newborns die within the first 28 days of life. Many of these deaths could be prevented. Caesarean birth rates are rising to nearly 30% worldwide, double the WHO recommendation, often without improving health outcomes. Globally, 55% of women experience obstetric violence, and around 257 million women still have unmet family planning needs, while 45% of abortions remain unsafe.

Midwives are the solution. They can provide 90% of essential sexual, reproductive, maternal, newborn, and adolescent health services. With one million more midwives, the world could prevent 67% of maternal deaths, 64% of newborn deaths, and 65% of stillbirths by 2035 — saving more than 4.3 million lives.

The One Million More petition will remain open until the last day of the ICM Triennial Congress in Lisbon, June 2026, where signatures will be handed to global leaders. The campaign will also be the theme of International Day of the Midwife 2026 (IDM2026), making it a key global advocacy moment.

New Zealand is fortunate to have a midwifery-led maternity service that is respected around the world, yet too few midwives are available to meet the needs of women and whānau across the country. Our maternity services are under pressure, with a stretched workforce experiencing stress and burnout. Midwives are central to safe, high-quality care, providing continuity, expertise and compassionate support for women, whānau and pēpi. Ongoing investment is vital to sustain this model and ensure every whānau has access to skilled midwifery care.

The petition is hosted at millionmore.org, available in English, French, and Spanish, with assets anyone can download to share the campaign widely. After the petition closes, ICM will share with each member association the number of signatures collected from their country and provide tailored advocacy tools to use these results nationally.

New Zealand College of Midwives encourages all midwives, healthcare professionals, and members of the public to sign and share the petition.

ENDS

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