In the last decade, South Africa has made significant progress in reducing child and maternal mortality rates. Although progress has been made in improving levels of maternal and child morbidity and mortality, it is important to indicate that data used are based on varied sources and systems that sometimes yield conflicting data.

South Africa has a well-established statistics system. However, not all deaths are registered and the quality of the cause-of-death information is often inadequate.

The Improvement of Maternal and Child Morbidity and Mortality Surveillance (MIMMS) project was initiated to address challenges, bottlenecks and short comings within the surveillance system that compromise the efficiency and effectiveness of the system. Monitoring Maternal and Child Morbidity and Mortality in South Africa is a critical resource that gives insight to the current state of the existing surveillance system and how to strength strategies for monitoring maternal and child morbidity and mortality.