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UN member states have committed to universal health coverage (UHC) to ensure all individuals and communities receive the health services they need without suffering financial hardship. Although the pursuit of UHC should unify disparate global health challenges, it is too commonly seen as another standalone initiative with a singular focus on the health sector. Despite constituting the cornerstone of the health-related Sustainable Development Goals, UHC-related commitments, actions, and metrics do not engage with the major drivers and determinants of health, such as poverty, gender inequality, discriminatory laws and policies, environment, housing, education, sanitation, and employment. Given that all countries already face multiple competing health priorities, the global UHC agenda should be used to reconcile, rationalise, prioritise, and integrate investments and multisectoral actions that influence health. In this paper, we call for greater coordination and coherence using a UHC+ lens to suggest new approaches to funding that can extend beyond biomedical health services to include the cross-cutting determinants of health. The proposed intersectoral co-financing mechanisms aim to support the advancement of health for all, regardless of countries' income., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests We declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2023 World Health Organization. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. This is an Open Access article published under the CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 IGO license which permits users to download and share the article for non-commercial purposes, so long as the article is reproduced in the whole without changes, and provided the original source is properly cited. This article shall not be used or reproduced in association with the promotion of commercial products, services or any entity. There should be no suggestion that WHO endorses any specific organisation, products or services. The use of the WHO logo is not permitted. This notice should be preserved along with the article's original URL.)

Background: Globally, approximately 800 women and 6400 newborns die around the time of childbirth each day. Many of these deaths could be prevented with high-quality emergency obstetric and newborn care (EmONC). The Monitoring Emergency Obstetric Care: A handbook guides strengthening EmONC services. However, the handbook contains limited quality of care measures. Our study identified and prioritised quality of care indicators for potential inclusion in the handbook, which is undergoing revision., Methods: We conducted a consultative scoping review, mapping, and prioritisation exercise to select a short list of indicators on facility-based maternal and newborn quality of care. Indicators were identified from literature searches and expert suggestions and organised by the categories of structure, process, and outcomes as defined in the World Health Organization's Standards for Improving Quality of Maternal and Newborn Care in Health Facilities. We focused on process indicators, encompassing the provision of care and experience of care during the intrapartum period, and developed a priority list of indicators using the selection criteria of relevance and feasibility. Experience of care indicators were also mapped against the Person-Centered Maternity Care (PCMC) scale., Results: We extracted a total of 3023 quality of care indicators. After removing out-of-scope and duplicate indicators and applying our selection criteria, we identified 20 provision of care indicators for possible inclusion in the revised EmONC handbook. We recommend including a score for experience of care that could be measured with the 30-item or the 13-item PCMC scale. We also identified 29 experience of care items not covered by the PCMC scale that could be used. Provider experience, patient safety, and quality of abortion care were identified as areas for which no or few indicators were found through our scoping review., Conclusions: Through a rigorous, consultative, and multi-step process, we selected a short list of process-related, facility-based quality of care indicators for emergency obstetric and newborn care. This list could be included in the EmONC handbook or used for other monitoring purposes. Country consultations to assess the utility and feasibility of the proposed indicators and their adaptation to local contexts will support their refinement and uptake., Registration: https://osf.io/msxbd (Open Science Framework)., (Copyright © 2023 by the Journal of Global Health. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: Existing datasets and research in the field of adolescent mental health do not always meet the needs of practitioners, policymakers, and program implementers, particularly in the context of vulnerable populations. Here, we introduce a collaborative, demand-driven methodology for the development of a strategic adolescent mental health research agenda. Ultimately, this agenda aims to guide future data sharing and collection efforts that meet the most pressing data needs of key stakeholders., Methods: We conducted a rapid literature search to summarize common themes in adolescent mental health research into a "topic map". We then hosted two virtual workshops with a range of international experts to discuss the topic map and identify shared priorities for future collaboration and research., Results: Our topic map identifies 10 major themes in adolescent mental health, organized into system-level, community-level, and individual-level categories. The engagement of cross-sectoral experts resulted in the validation of the mapping exercise, critical insights for refining the topic map, and a collaborative list of priorities for future research., Discussion: This innovative agile methodology enables a focused deliberation with diverse stakeholders and can serve as the starting point for data generation and collaboration practices, both in the field of adolescent mental health and other topics., (Copyright © 2022 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: To validate a culturally-adapted Kriol and Belizean English version of the Revised Children's Anxiety and Depression Scale (RCADS) through comparison with clinical diagnoses made using the Kiddie Schedule of Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia., Methods: Participants comprised of 256 adolescents aged 10-14 years and 15-19 years, who completed the adapted RCADS (10 depression items, 12 anxiety items) in one-on-one interviews, followed by a diagnostic assessment using Kiddie Schedule of Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia administered by trained clinicians. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, diagnostic odds ratios, area under the curve (AUC), and Youden's Index were calculated for RCADS cutoffs and scores on the total scale and anxiety and depression subscales., Results: For adolescents aged 10-14 years (n = 161), the AUC was 0.72 for the full scale, 0.67 for anxiety subscale, and 0.76 for depression subscale. For adolescents aged 15-19 years (n = 95), the AUCs were 0.82, 0.77, and 0.83. Most depression items performed well in discriminating those with and without diagnoses. Separation anxiety items performed poorly. "Thoughts of death" were common even among adolescents not meeting diagnostic criteria. The RCADS depression subscale presented the strongest psychometric properties with adolescents aged 15-19 years (at cutoff of 13, sensitivity = 0.83, specificity = 0.77, positive predictive value = 0.47, negative predictive value = 0.95, odds ratio = 15.96)., Conclusion: The adapted RCADS-22 had acceptable categorization for adolescents aged 10-14 years and excellent categorization for adolescents aged 15-19 years; therefore, the tool is recommended for use among the latter age group. Based on sensitivity and specificity values at different cutoffs, guidance is provided to select different thresholds to suit clinical, public health, or other uses to detect and quantify adolescent depression and anxiety in Belize., (Copyright © 2022 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: Mental disorders are among the leading causes of disability among adolescents aged 10-19 years. However, data on prevalence of mental health conditions are extremely sparse across low- and middle-income countries, even though most adolescents live in these settings. This data gap is further exacerbated because few brief instruments for adolescent mental health are validated in these settings, making population-level measurement of adolescent mental health especially cumbersome to carry out. In response, the UNICEF has undertaken the Measurement of Mental Health Among Adolescents at the Population Level (MMAP) initiative, validating open-access brief measures and encouraging data collection in this area., Methods: This protocol presents the MMAP mixed-methods approach for cultural adaptation and clinical validation of adolescent mental health data collection tools across settings. Qualitative activities include an initial translation and adaptation, review by mental health experts, focus-group discussions with adolescents, cognitive interviews, synthesis of findings, and back-translation. An enriched sample of adolescents with mental health problems is then interviewed with the adapted tool, followed by gold-standard semistructured diagnostic interviews., Results: The study protocol is being implemented in Belize, Kenya, Nepal, and South Africa and includes measures for anxiety, depression, functional limitations, suicidality, care-seeking, and connectedness. Analyses, including psychometrics, will be conducted individually by country and combined across settings to assess the MMAP methodological process., Discussion: This protocol contributes to closing the data gap on adolescent mental health conditions by providing a rigorous process of cross-cultural adaptation and validation of data collection approaches., (Copyright © 2022 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: Screening tools such as the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) could potentially be used in resource-limited settings to identify adolescents who need mental health support. We examined the criterion validity of the isiXhosa versions of the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 in detecting depression and anxiety among adolescents (10-19 years) in South Africa., Methods: Adolescents were recruited from the general population and from nongovernmental organizations working with adolescents in need of mental health support. The PHQ-9 and GAD-7 were culturally adapted and translated into isiXhosa and administered to 302 adolescents (56.9% female). The Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia was administered by trained clinicians as the gold standard diagnostic measure for depression and anxiety., Results: For the PHQ-9, the area under the curve was 0.88 for the full sample of adolescents (10-19 years old). A score of ≥10 had 91% sensitivity and 76% specificity for detecting adolescents with depression. For the GAD-7, the area under the curve was 0.78, and cutoff scores with an optimal sensitivity-specificity balance were low (≥6). A score of ≥6 had 67% sensitivity and 75% specificity for detecting adolescents with anxiety., Discussion: The culturally adapted isiXhosa version of the PHQ-9 can be used as a valid measure for depression in adolescents. Further research on the GAD-7 for use with adolescents is recommended., (Copyright © 2022 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Adapting data collection instruments using transcultural translation and adaptation processes is essential to ensure that respondents comprehend the items and the original meaning is retained across languages and contexts. This approach is central to UNICEF's efforts to expand the use of standard data collection tools across settings and close the global data gap on adolescent mental health., Methods: We conducted transcultural translation and adaptation processes in Belize using the Revised Children's Anxiety and Depression Scale (RCADS). Items from the original scale were translated into Belizean English and Kriol, reviewed by local mental health experts, and discussed in focus groups. Cognitive interviews were conducted with adolescents and parents. The information collected was analyzed with cultural equivalence domains: comprehensibility, acceptability, relevance, completeness, and technical equivalence. Bilingual discussions of findings informed the final item wordings, and the adapted tool was back-translated., Results: Adaptation of terms and specific expressions were done to improve comprehensibility and to ensure the appropriate clinical meaning. For example, the expression 'feeling scared' was perceived to imply immaturity or threaten masculinity and was adapted to 'feeling afraid.' Expressions like "shaky" were modified to "trimble" in Kriol. Statements were reworded as questions to enhance acceptability and comprehensibility., Discussion: A culturally adapted version of the RCADS was developed for use among adolescents in Belize in Belizean English and Kriol. The transcultural translation and adaptation procedure can be applied for other settings or tools to design contextual adaptations of mental health instruments prior to their validation or use in new settings., (Copyright © 2022 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Competing Interests: All authors were involved in the development of the child health and wellbeing dashboards described in this Comment. The authors alone are responsible for the views expressed in this Comment and they do not necessarily represent the views, decisions, or policies of the institutions with which they are affiliated. TDi, SR, SD, and AC received support from the Children's Investment Fund Foundation to develop the child health and wellbeing dashboards. LG and AC received funding support and consultancy fees from the Children in All Policies 2030 initiative. The other authors declare no other competing interests. We thank the following colleagues for their inputs to the indicator selection process and feedback on the design elements of the dashboard: Claudia García Moreno Esteva and Lynn Marie Sardinha from the WHO Department of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research for their help with the intimate partner violence data; Elizabeth Katwan from the WHO Department of Maternal, Newborn, Child, Adolescent Health and Ageing for the WHO policy survey data on reproductive, maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent health; Enrique Delamonica, Suguru Mizunoya, Claudia Cappa, Nicole Petrowski, Lucia Hug, Danzhen You, Dave Sharrow, Liliana Carvajal, Samuel Chakwera, and Lauren Francis from the UNICEF Division of Data, Analytics, Planning and Monitoring for their inputs on the child mortality, child poverty, education, and child protection indicators. We thank the team from Lushomo, Capetown, South Africa for their help with the dashboard design. We also thank the Children's Investment Fund Foundation for their support. The members of the Children in All Policies, Data and Learning Working Group are John Borrazzo, Anthony Costello, Sarah Dalglish, Theresa Diaz, Tanya Doherty, Caterina Felici, Lu Gram, Gerard Lopez, Karen Ofosu-Orchard, Lois Park, Timothy Powell, Srivatsan Rajagopalan, Jennifer Requejo, Marina Romanello, Harshpal Singh Sachdev, Kwame Sakyi, and Kathleen Strong.

Although great improvements in child survival were achieved in the past two decades, progress has been uneven within and across countries, and the COVID-19 pandemic threatens to reverse previous advances. Demographic and epidemiological transitions around the world have resulted in shifts in the causes and distribution of child death and diseases, and many children are living with short-term and long-term chronic illnesses and disabilities. These changes, plus global threats such as pandemics, transnational and national security issues, and climate change, mean that regular monitoring of child health and wellbeing is essential if we are to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. This Health Policy describes the three-phased process undertaken by the Child Health Accountability Tracking technical advisory group (CHAT) to develop a core set of indicators on child health and wellbeing for global monitoring purposes, and presents CHAT's research recommendations to address data gaps. CHAT reached consensus on 20 core indicators specific to the health sector, which include 11 impact-level indicators and nine outcome-level indicators that cover the topics of: acute conditions and prevention; health promotion and child development; and chronic conditions, disabilities, injuries, and violence against children. An additional six indicators (three impact and three outcome) that capture information on child health issues such as malaria and HIV are recommended; however, these indicators are only relevant to high-burden regions. CHAT's four research priorities will require investments in health information systems and measurement activities. These investments will help to increase data on children aged 5-9 years; develop standard metadata and data collection processes to enable cross-country comparisons and progress assessments over time; reach a global consensus on essential interventions and associated indicators for monitoring emerging priority areas such as child development, chronic conditions, disabilities, and injuries; and implement strategies to increase the uptake of data on child health to improve evidence-based planning, programming, and advocacy efforts., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests We declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2022 World Health Organization. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Background: Effective coverage measures aim to estimate the proportion of a population in need of a service that received a positive health outcome. In 2020, the Effective Coverage Think Tank Group recommended using a 'coverage cascade' for maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health and nutrition (MNCAHN), which organises components of effective coverage in a stepwise fashion, with each step accounting for different aspects of quality of care (QoC), applied at the population level. The cascade outlines six steps that increase the likelihood that the population in need experience the intended health benefit: 1) the population in need (target population) who contact a health service; 2) that has the inputs available to deliver the service; 3) who receive the health service; 4) according to quality standards; 5) and adhere to prescribed medication(s) or health workers instructions; and 6) experience the expected health outcome. We examined how effective coverage of life-saving interventions from childbirth to children aged nine has been defined and assessed which steps of the cascade are captured by existing measures., Methods: We undertook a rapid systematic review. Seven scientific literature databases were searched covering the period from May 1, 2017 to July, 8 2021. Reference lists from reviews published in 2018 and 2019 were examined to identify studies published prior to May 2017. Eligible studies reported population-level contact coverage measures adjusted for at least one dimension of QoC., Results: Based on these two search approaches this review includes literature published from 2010 to 2021. From 16 662 records reviewed, 33 studies were included, reporting 64 effective coverage measures. The most frequently examined measures were for childbirth and immediate newborn care (n = 24). No studies examined measures among children aged five to nine years. Definitions of effective coverage varied across studies. Key sources of variability included (i) whether a single effective coverage measure was reported for a package of interventions or separate measures were calculated for each intervention; (ii) the number and type of coverage cascade steps applied to adjust for QoC; and (iii) the individual items included in the effective coverage definition and the methods used to generate a composite quality measure., Conclusion: In the MNCAHN literature there is substantial heterogeneity in both definitions and construction of effective coverage, limiting the comparability of measures over time and place. Current measurement approaches are not closely aligned with the proposed cascade. For widespread adoption, there is a need for greater standardisation of indicator definitions and transparency in reporting, so governments can use these measures to improve investments in MNACHN and implement life-saving health policies and programs., Competing Interests: Competing interests: The authors completed the ICMJE Unified Competing Interest form (available upon request from the corresponding author), and declare no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2022 by the Journal of Global Health. All rights reserved.)

The 2030 Sustainable Development Goals agenda calls for health data to be disaggregated by age. However, age groupings used to record and report health data vary greatly, hindering the harmonisation, comparability, and usefulness of these data, within and across countries. This variability has become especially evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, when there was an urgent need for rapid cross-country analyses of epidemiological patterns by age to direct public health action, but such analyses were limited by the lack of standard age categories. In this Personal View, we propose a recommended set of age groupings to address this issue. These groupings are informed by age-specific patterns of morbidity, mortality, and health risks, and by opportunities for prevention and disease intervention. We recommend age groupings of 5 years for all health data, except for those younger than 5 years, during which time there are rapid biological and physiological changes that justify a finer disaggregation. Although the focus of this Personal View is on the standardisation of the analysis and display of age groups, we also outline the challenges faced in collecting data on exact age, especially for health facilities and surveillance data. The proposed age disaggregation should facilitate targeted, age-specific policies and actions for health care and disease management., Competing Interests: We declare no competing interests., (© 2021 World Health Organization; licensee Elsevier. This is an Open Access article published under the CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 IGO license.)

Background: Policymakers need regular high-quality coverage data on care around the time of birth to accelerate progress for ending preventable maternal and newborn deaths and stillbirths. With increasing facility births, routine Health Management Information System (HMIS) data have potential to track coverage. Identifying barriers and enablers faced by frontline health workers recording HMIS source data in registers is important to improve data for use., Methods: The EN-BIRTH study was a mixed-methods observational study in five hospitals in Bangladesh, Nepal and Tanzania to assess measurement validity for selected Every Newborn coverage indicators. We described data elements required in labour ward registers to track these indicators. To evaluate barriers and enablers for correct recording of data in registers, we designed three interview tools: a) semi-structured in-depth interview (IDI) guide b) semi-structured focus group discussion (FGD) guide, and c) checklist assessing care-to-documentation. We interviewed two groups of respondents (January 2018-March 2019): hospital nurse-midwives and doctors who fill ward registers after birth (n = 40 IDI and n = 5 FGD); and data collectors (n = 65). Qualitative data were analysed thematically by categorising pre-identified codes. Common emerging themes of barriers or enablers across all five hospitals were identified relating to three conceptual framework categories., Results: Similar themes emerged as both barriers and enablers. First, register design was recognised as crucial, yet perceived as complex, and not always standardised for necessary data elements. Second, register filling was performed by over-stretched nurse-midwives with variable training, limited supervision, and availability of logistical resources. Documentation complexity across parallel documents was time-consuming and delayed because of low staff numbers. Complete data were valued more than correct data. Third, use of register data included clinical handover and monthly reporting, but little feedback was given from data users., Conclusion: Health workers invest major time recording register data for maternal and newborn core health indicators. Improving data quality requires standardised register designs streamlined to capture only necessary data elements. Consistent implementation processes are also needed. Two-way feedback between HMIS levels is critical to improve performance and accurately track progress towards agreed health goals.

Intervention coverage-the proportion of the population with a health-care need who receive care-does not account for intervention quality and potentially overestimates health benefits of services provided to populations. Effective coverage introduces the dimension of quality of care to the measurement of intervention coverage. Many definitions and methodological approaches to measuring effective coverage have been developed, resulting in confusion over definition, calculation, interpretation, and monitoring of these measures. To develop a consensus on the definition and measurement of effective coverage for maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent health and nutrition (MNCAHN), WHO and UNICEF convened a group of experts, the Effective Coverage Think Tank Group, to make recommendations for standardising the definition of effective coverage, measurement approaches for effective coverage, indicators of effective coverage in MNCAHN, and to develop future effective coverage research priorities. Via a series of consultations, the group recommended that effective coverage be defined as the proportion of a population in need of a service that resulted in a positive health outcome from the service. The proposed effective coverage measures and care cascade steps can be applied to further develop effective coverage measures across a broad range of MNCAHN services. Furthermore, advances in measurement of effective coverage could improve monitoring efforts towards the achievement of universal health coverage., (Copyright © 2020 This is an Open Access article published under the CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 IGO license which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. In any use of this article, there should be no suggestion that WHO endorses any specific organisation, products or services. The use of the WHO logo is not permitted. This notice should be preserved along with the article's original URL. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Competing Interests: This article is part of a series proposed by Countdown to 2030 for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health and the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (PMNCH) hosted by the World Health Organization and commissioned by The BMJ, which peer reviewed, edited, and made the decisions to publish. Open access fees are funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and PMNCH.

Competing Interests: Competing interests: We have read and understood BMJ policy on declaration of interests and have the following interests to declare: RH is employed by PMNCH, which provided funding to support the country case study teams; CEA, SB, CB, SNB, LB, EAC, JKD, JFV, VG, HMM, JM, JM, IR, MLR, VS, SS, HS, DU, CNW, PY received funding from PMNCH for consultancy fees and related costs for undertaking the case study. All other authors contributed in kind to this collective effort with their time and inputs.

Conceived in 2003 and born in 2005 with the launch of its first report and country profiles, the Countdown to 2015 for Maternal, Newborn, and Child Survival has reached its originally proposed lifespan. Major reductions in the deaths of mothers and children have occurred since Countdown's inception, even though most of the 75 priority countries failed to achieve Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5. The coverage of life-saving interventions tracked in Countdown increased steadily over time, but wide inequalities persist between and within countries. Key drivers of coverage such as financing, human resources, commodities, and conducive health policies also showed important, yet insufficient increases. As a multistakeholder initiative of more than 40 academic, international, bilateral, and civil society institutions, Countdown was successful in monitoring progress and raising the visibility of the health of mothers, newborns, and children. Lessons learned from this initiative have direct bearing on monitoring progress during the Sustainable Development Goals era., (Copyright © 2016 World Health Organization. Published by Elsevier Ltd/Inc/BV. All rights reserved. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To expand the "Countdown to 2015" analyses of health inequalities beyond the 75 countries being monitored worldwide to include all countries in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) that have adequate data available., Methods: Demographic and Health Surveys and Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys were used to monitor progress in health intervention coverage and inequalities in 13 LAC countries, five of which are included in the Countdown (Bolivia, Brazil, Guatemala, Haiti, and Peru) and eight that are not (Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Guyana, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Suriname). The outcomes included neonatal and under-5 year mortality rates, child stunting prevalence, and the composite coverage index-a weighted average of eight indicators of coverage in reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health. The slope index of inequality and concentration index were used to assess absolute and relative inequalities., Results: The composite coverage index showed monotonic patterns over wealth quintiles, with lowest levels in the poorest quintile. Under-5 and neonatal mortality as well as stunting prevalence were highest among the poor. In most countries, intervention coverage increased, while under-5 mortality and stunting prevalence fell most rapidly among the poor, so that inequalities were reduced over time. However, Bolivia, Guatemala, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Peru still show marked inequalities. Brazil has practically eliminated inequalities in stunting., Conclusions: LAC countries presented substantial progress in terms of reducing inequalities in reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health interventions, child mortality, and nutrition. However, the poorest 20% of the population in most countries is still lagging behind, and renewed actions are needed to improve equity.

In this article, we draw on available evidence from Countdown to 2015 and other sources to make the case for keeping women and children at the heart of the next development agenda that will replace the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) framework after 2015. We provide a status update on global progress in achieving MDGs 4 and 5, reduce child mortality and improve maternal health, respectively--showing that although considerable mortality reductions have been achieved, many more women's and children's lives can be saved every day through available, cost effective interventions. We describe key underlying determinants of poor maternal and child health outcomes and the need for well-coordinated, comprehensive approaches for addressing them such as introducing a combination of nutrition specific and sensitive interventions to reduce pervasive malnutrition, targeting interventions to the underserved to reduce inequities in access to care, and increasing women's social status through improved access to education and income-earning opportunities. In the wake of population momentum and emergencies such as the recent ebola outbreak and other humanitarian crises, health systems must be strengthened to be able to respond to these pressures. In conclusion, we underscore that the unfinished business of women's and children's health must be prioritized in the days ahead, and that ending preventable maternal and child deaths is not only a moral obligation but is achievable and essential to sustainable development moving forward., (Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.)

The end of 2015 will signal the end of the Millennium Development Goal era, when the world can take stock of what has been achieved. The Countdown to 2015 for Maternal, Newborn, and Child Survival (Countdown) has focused its 2014 report on how much has been achieved in intervention coverage in these groups, and on how best to sustain, focus, and intensify efforts to progress for this and future generations. Our 2014 results show unfinished business in achievement of high, sustained, and equitable coverage of essential interventions. Progress has accelerated in the past decade in most Countdown countries, suggesting that further gains are possible with intensified actions. Some of the greatest coverage gaps are in family planning, interventions addressing newborn mortality, and case management of childhood diseases. Although inequities are pervasive, country successes in reaching of the poorest populations provide lessons for other countries to follow. As we transition to the next set of global goals, we must remember the centrality of data to accountability, and the importance of support of country capacity to collect and use high-quality data on intervention coverage and inequities for decision making. To fulfill the health agenda for women and children both now and beyond 2015 requires continued monitoring of country and global progress; Countdown is committed to playing its part in this effort., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This article reviews formal and informal mechanisms through which the World Health Organization (WHO) is promoting policies for the advancement of women's health. Specific attention is given to select examples of innovative strategies the WHO has adopted in recent years to increase political commitment to women's and children's health and influence the development of policies supportive of country efforts to achieve Millennium Development Goals 4 (MDG4) and MDG 5 (to reduce child mortality and improve maternal health, respectively).