woman: the following program is an original proroduction of linktv. narrator: next up, an all new motherers day spececial. being g a new mom m is rewardidg and challenging, but what extra burdens do mothers in pooror countries faface? come take a tour of the world's best and worst places to be a mom in this new rereport from "save thehe children" and viewchange.org. man: "viewchange" is about people making g real progress in tackling the world's toughest issues. can a story change the world? see for yourself in "viewchange, the mothers index." narrator: you've heard the term lottttery of b birth. more often t than not, children

born in rich countries win it, while those in poor countries lose. a child's life expectancy, health, education and so much more hinges on where he or she happens to enter the world. but there's also a lottery of motherhood, and expectant moms in developing countries are facing the toughest odds. every year more than 350,000 women die from c complications of pregnancy and childbirth, most simply because they don't have access to basic delivery care. and the riripple effect is d dramatic. whwhen a mother dies, her children arere more likely t toe poor, more likely to dieie befoe the age of five, or to drop out of school if they survive. but private aid groups and governments are working hard to change the odds in t the lottery of motherhood. in sierra leone, a place that "s"save the children" ranks s as one of the very worst places to be a mom, a new government

program is trying to turn the tide, as we see e in this short film from "vieiewchange." wowoman: afterer a brutall decade-lonong conflict, sierra leone has the highest child and maternal mortality rates in the world.

[music plalays] [dr. tagie gbawru-mansaray] i'm a medical doctor housed here at the princess christian maternity hospspital.

narrator: one in five children die before their first birthday and one in eight women die during pregnancy. narrator: the one referral

hospital in the capital of freetown services a population of over 400,000 people. ibraham thorlie: good afternoon. narrator: though the hospital is severely understaffed, it is not the only reason so many people are dying. [ibrahamam thorlie] narrator: and often, those patients who come too late are very close to death. [ibraham thorlie] narratoror: rather t than watchg their patients die, many doctorors and nursrses like rerc pay fofor the worst caseses from ththeir own small l salaries.

nanarrator: victor is one of the few w lucky survrvivors in a a e where so many die. however, the government has just l launched a program providing freeee health cacare f pregnant wenen and childldren under fiveve. [ibrahamam thorlie]

narrator: so where are the best and worst places to be a mom?? for its state of the world's mother's report, "save the children" studied 164 countries and compiled a mothers index. at the top of the index, women have what they need to thrive: excellent medical services, plenty of skilled health workers, and opportunities for education and advancement. but the gap between the topp and bottom-ranked countries is stark. at the bottom, one in three children suffers from malnutrition and one in 30 women will die from pregnancy related causes. and how does the united states stack up? number 31. america's maternal mortality is the highest of any industrialized nation. but the study is also clear about solutions that work,

and the very best solution for helping moms and children: more health workers on the front lines. the equation is simple. more doctors, more midwives and community health workers means more mothers and children surviving childbirth and the early years of life. nowhere is this more clear than a place like nepal, which is ranked 133rd on the mothers index. this "viewchange" short film from "living proof" tells the story. [b s singi]

trslslatormy n namis maheorori. i'm y yearsld.. my husndnd wento i ind w work. he t theres nono fd. no rice, no nothing. aroundere there's work.k. i am very, very scar.. everyoneas been asking autut it, and that meses me en m mor scared. my fst childas breach rn, and i might st die this time. if w will ve, , i ll liviv if i will di i i wildie. someaid take her to the hostal. someaid drivher do. everyo had opinis. but how ululd yoget a ca withoumoney?

in novbeber, mdaugught was bo.. i had e e babyn ouour w sheded r 12 dayafter thbirth, the baby and were kept in the cow she onhe 13tday, we were alwewed ou yocacan't tatake newbobo in t house. gogegets ary.. you' better of the cowhed.

indudukaari:i: s was c cpletely unawe e of t facact at shehe wowould ed m medal carar cacause r fifirschildd s s brea bororn. if she hadn't gott prope re by y trained birth attendant, she would he e died. mamaheori: i'll rest r sesen days, buthen it's s backo wowork i have to pod d the ce, , cay water, c g grassand d ch wood.d. lifes s tougherere.

narrator: don't go away. when we return, one country's child health success story that has the rest of the world taking n notice. narrator: if there's one overwhelming success story in maternal and child health, it can be found in malawi, where almost half the country, 40%, lives in poverty. but for years, the government has been investing in all sorts of new plans for life-saving care. the result? the number of dedeaths in children undnder five has been t in half over the past 20 yeaear. malawi's striking results are strongly linked to efforts on the ground, house by house, community to community, to give

mothers the support they need. "living proof" has this success story from malawawi.

man: my naname is laititom chawa and i have six grandchildren. i was born at homeme in 1948. in previous days, pregnant moththers were using unsafe methods.s. some would have e their babies in g grass huts.s. after gigiving birth, they w wod leave babieses on the grground in the cold.d. we didn't know b better. we had a l lot of deaths. one day, hospipital workerss asasked us to o be a partt of the agogo progrgram.

we go toto their hououse. we t talk to bototh the mann and ththe woman. we show them pictures and tell them what can happen if theyey give birth at home, at the mototr of the bababy can fall sick or dieie.

deaths have decreased, diseases have decreased, and d life has improved. i am very hahappy becaususe if the student fails, you are not a good teacher. i see fruits of whwhat i teachc, and i'm proud that i am a good teacher. narrator: accessss to healthcare isn't the whole story, of course. helping women must include

an investment in education. in rural bangladesh, communities are learning the real value of empowering women. this film from "save the children" shows that giving girls a voice can be the most powerful solution of all. woman: shilpi's father died when she was very young. her mother worked as a maid to support shilpi and two younger

sons. she earned only enough to feed them one meal a day. when "save the children" started the "girls' voices project" nearby, shilpi joined. she met with other teenage girls to build self confidence and learn new skills like making a budget and saving money. shilpi realized she could help support her family even without working outside the home. she started her first business weaving mats.

narrator: around the world, communities are coming together not only to save the lives of moththerand childrenen, but toto improve them, to give women real opportunities to change the courses of their l lives. basic hehealthcare can solve the most urgent crcrises, but a bigger sea change, one that empowers women to lelearn, to marry later, and to decide when to have children will

ultimately close the gaps in the odds that mothers face. those changes are happening every day, country by countrtry and girl by girl. sometimes in places s like indi, sosomething asas simple as a bicycle can make all the difference.

arme m modi:or a abo a couple of yearswe only cused on adu women and literacy for tm.m. and noticed nyny of e gigirl who came to the clas we very, veryoyoung rlss thth ngalsutr which is g gold d blblac beeded necace e arnd thehe necks,hihich iindidia is a sbobol ofatririmo. and th h had bies s onheir hipsanand i arteted ask

wh''goining and w w are such youngirirls married f f alrey? di: in my y villes, there werenlnly scolss tohehe sevth grade there rere no gh s schls, soso we wkeked in0 vivilles at t at point inimime, a thehereere only threeigigh scols.s. then i ked, younow, i asked the rerents,he m motrs, we, , what hpens to e e boys you owow, hodo you sd e boboyso schoho? and theyaiaid, wl, we ge ththemicycycle and said, well, whatbobout the gis?s? and theyaiaid, o no.o. ''a wawastof monon to give a bicye e to airl.l.

she's gog toto tn arouou and get maieied. and the'e'a fafamo indiaia yiying: y wawatea planan th''goining grow in a neighbor's s gard? so t thoug, my g g, if i 's on a bicycle that's keepgg gis s fromoingng tschoolol let's gohehead a, yoyou ow, give it t them. [bhatiti]

haharat's ther]] [bharati]

man: like what y saw? th visit vwchange.g, link tv's brand-new multimedia website. watch over 200 stories aboutut new solutions to the developing world's biggggest challenges, get invovolved with the e issue, share ththe storiewith friends, and help change e the world all at viewchange.org. narrator: to read the full 2011 state of the world's mother's report and to learn more about "save the children," visit savethechildren.org.

woman: the following program isis an original productioion of linktv. narrator: next up, the true story of a girl who justst wants to go to s school and d has to change the minind of her entiree villllage to do o it. an awardrd-winning a animation d other short films from linktv's "viewchange" film contest. man: "viewchange" is about people m making real progress and tackling the world's toughest issues. can a story change the world? see for yourself in "viewchange, crossising the gender gagap." narrator: compared with men, the lives of women are so often hidden behind the walls of tradition, poverty, and isolation. compared with men, the stories of women so often just aren't told.