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Why is the rate of premature births so high in this community?

Pakistan · 3 August 2026 ·

Baby Ladoo's grandmother, Hanifa, rocks the hammock where the 5-month-old stirs. His mother Mariam, 17, says her son was born prematurely at around seven months gestation. She couldn't afford follow-up care, so she bought him home and is hoping for the best. About 1 in 4 babies in this fishing settlement of Rehri Goth are born prematurely, nearly double the national rate of 14% — and that's one of the world's highest. Scientists in a nearby university say they may have uncovered a bacteria that acts as an indicator of whether a women is likely to birth full term or pre-term.

Diaa Hadid/NPR

Media Source: NPR (USA)

Date: 3 August 2026

While premature babies born in the West have an excellent chance of survival — particularly those born after 32 weeks gestation, or at around 8 months — it's not the same in low-income countries. The World Health Organization says some half of all premature babies born in poor countries at around 32 weeks are likely to die. Many survivors suffer life-long impacts to their vision and hearing as well as learning problems. The prematurity rate in Rehri Goth, in southeast Karachi, is among the highest in Pakistan: about one in four babies here are born early — before 37 weeks of gestation, according to Dr. Fyezah Jehan, chair of Paediatric Infectious Diseases at Aga Khan University in Karachi, who specialises in maternal health. That's nearly double Pakistan's nationwide average of just over 14% percent, already among the world's highest.

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Why is the rate of premature births so high in this community?

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