A total of forty-three countries were selected for the study across the five regions in Africa. The mean maternal mortality rate ranges from 17.72 to 2322.8, with a combined mean of 691.1±411.1. The African regions with the highest average maternal mortality rates are West Africa, Central Africa, and East Africa, with values of 763, 718, and 647 (Figure 1). The trendline shows that the mean maternal mortality rate was reduced progressively from 1990 to 2015 (Figure 1). Among the seven selected countries from Central Africa, Equatorial Guinea had the lowest mean maternal mortality rate (451.9), while Angola had the highest mean maternal mortality rate of 1003.8 (Figure 1). Out of the 15 selected West African countries, Cote d’Ivoire had the lowest mean maternal mortality rate of 173.76, while Sierra Leone had the highest mean maternal mortality rate of 2322.8 (Figure 1). Among the 3 South African countries, Lesotho had the lowest mean maternal mortality rate of 17.7, while South Africa had the highest mean maternal mortality rate of 1261.6 (Figure 2). Among the Eastern African countries, Djibouti had the lowest mean maternal mortality rate of 64.2, and South Sudan had the highest mean maternal mortality rate of 1276.1 (Figure 1). In North Africa, Libya recorded the lowest mean maternal mortality rate of 215.6 while Algeria had the highest rate (867.76)
The mean literacy rate seen in the selected African countries ranged from 22.2 to 98.4, with a combined mean of 64.4 (±23.5). The regions with the highest mean literacy rates are North Africa (67.9), West Africa (65.5), and East Africa (62.9) (Figure 2). Among the Central African countries, Gabon had the lowest mean literacy rate of 26.6, and Guinea had the highest literacy rate of 90.8 Botswana had the lowest mean literacy rate of 26.2 among the South African countries, while Lesotho had the highest rate of 97.9. In West Africa, the literacy rate was highest in Guinea (97.5), and the Benin Republic recorded the lowest mean literacy rate (32.9). South Sudan recorded the lowest mean literacy rate of 22.2 in East Africa, while Uganda had the highest rate of 98.4. Among the North African countries, Algeria had the lowest mean literacy rate of 66.9%, and Tunisia recorded the highest rate of 77.51% (Figure 2). The literacy rate shows that the literacy rate in Africa was at its lowest ebb (14.0) in the year 2000 and this was experienced in the Southern region of the continent. On the contrary, the highest literacy rate (92.1) was seen in 1995 in the Central African region
The mean rate of becoming a teenage mother in the selected African countries ranged from 6.1 to 46.4, with a combined mean of 25.7 (±10.2). The regions with the highest mean teenage mother rates are North Africa (25.92), Central Africa (24.25) and East Africa (23.86). In Central Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo had the lowest mean teenage mother rate (25.5), and Cameroon had the highest rate of 36.1. Only Botswana had data available among the South African countries, and it recorded a teenage mother rate of 21.4. Among the West African countries, Nigeria (6.1) has the lowest teenage mother rate while Mali(46.4) has the highest teenage mother rate. Among the Eastern African nations, Djibouti had the highest teenage mother rate of 9.3 while Madagascar had the highest rate of 39.7. Libya (6.8) has the lowest teenage mother rate in North Africam and Tunisia has the highest rate (33.5). A trend line of teenage mother rate shows that Eastern Africa had the lowest rate across the regions in 1990, and Central Africa had the highest rate in 1995.
In Central Africa, ignoring the effect of teenage mother rate, maternal mortality rate is observed to have a rate of 180 per hundred thousand women; a unit increase in teenage mother rate increases maternal mortality by 15.86 per hundred thousand women. In Southern Africa, a unit increase in the teenage mother rate increased maternal mortality by 31.86 per hundred thousand women (Figure 3).
Given the level of youth literacy rate is set to zero, maternal mortality rate is expected to be about 1189.94 per hundred thousand women in Northern Africa; a unit increase in the youth literacy rate lowers maternal mortality rate by 9.52 per hundred thousand women in Northern Africa(Figure 4).
The non-linear regression results derived from curve estimation for other regions of Africa region whose data were not linear; using the compound model; with a statistically significant result at 1% level for all the regions. The non-linear regression showed that; in Eastern Africa, a 10-unit increase in rate of youth literacy (from 10% to 20%) reduced MMR by 22.18 per hundred thousand women; an increment in youth literacy rate by 30 units (from 40% to 70%) reduced MMR by 59.04 per hundred thousand women.
In Central Africa, an increase in youth literacy rate by 10 units (from 14% to 24%) reduced the MMR by 6.99 per hundred thousand women; an increase by 30 units (44% to 74%) lowered MMR by 20.16 per hundred thousand women. In Western Africa, a 10-unit rise in the youth literacy rate (27% to 37%) effected a drop in MMR by 48.83 per hundred thousand women; while an increase up to 30-unit (57% to 85%) reduced MMR by 115.29. In Southern Africa, a 10-unit increase in literacy rate (from 14% to 24%) effected an increase on MMR by 2.52 per hundred thousand women; a 30-unit increase in the literacy rate (from 44% to 74%) led to an increase in MMR by 7.68 per hundred thousand women.
Considering a 10% rise in adolescent literacy rate, generally a reduction in MMR is observed across all regions in the Africa continent, although the extent of reduction is different for each of the regions, across the years. A massive reduction in MMR was observed in Eastern Africa, Northern Africa and Western Africa, following a hypothetical 10% increase in youth literacy rate over some years; while in Central Africa, the observed reduction in MMR was little following a hypothetical 10% increase in youth literacy rate (Figure 4).
There are also non-linear regression results derived from curve estimation for the other African regions whose data were not linear (Eastern Africa, Northern Africa, Western Africa); using the compound model; with a statistically significant result at 1% level.
The non-linear regression showed that; in Eastern Africa, a 5-unit decrease in rate of teenage mothers (from 14% to 9%) reduced MMR by 10.2 per hundred thousand women; a decrease in teenage mothers’ rate by 15 units (from 39% to 24%) reduced MMR by 28.81 per hundred thousand women.
In Northern Africa, a unit decrease in teenage mothers’ rate (from 21 to 20) decreased MMR by 3.12 per hundred thousand women; while a 10-unit decrease (from 36 to 26) reduced MMR by 29.97 per hundred thousand women.
In Western Africa, a deflation in the maternal mortality rate by 3 units resulted into an increase in MMR by 18.48 per hundred thousand women; while a reduction in maternal mortality rate by 15 units led to an increase in MMR by 106.3 per hundred thousand women. Given a 10% reduction in the teenage mother rate across African regions, a significant reduction in the MMR was observed in two regions – Eastern Africa and Central Africa; a reduction in MMR was also observed in the Southern Africa. Conversely, a decrease in teenage mother rate resulted into a rise in MMR in the Western Africa region (Figure 5).