In marking International Women's Day, the WHO called on countries in the region to work toward equal opportunities for women and girls in order to promote their health.
"It is shameful that despite the region's rapid economic growth, a large and growing number of women are still excluded from the fruits of this progress," said Shin Young Soo, director of the WHO's regional office based in Manila.
"It is simply unacceptable that each year, more than 30,000 women in the region die unnecessarily due to pregnancy-related conditions," he added.
Shin noted that 90 percent of pregnancy-related deaths could be avoided if women's rights to good health were properly met.
But he lamented that numerous obstacles, such as societal discrimination and limited access to health services, combine to deprive women of their right to good health.
"A further challenge is the low level of education provided to women on average despite the fact that improved education for women has been found to produce better health outcomes for themselves and the generations that follow," he added.
Shin said the regional office was making the issue of maternal health a priority agenda and would be coming out with a report in October on measures that Asia-Pacific countries could take to improve the status of women and promote their right to good health.
