Danish mothers can’t complain, at least according to a Save the Children report on the 165 best, and worst, countries to be a mother in.

According to the report, Norway tops the list followed by Iceland, Sweden, New Zealand and then Denmark.

“The fact that Denmark ranks so high is because of a good parental leave system, a generally long education for girls and women and good delivery help. Danish women deliver almost always either at a hospital or with professional help,” Save the Children Programme Coordinator Jakob Eilsøe Mikkelsen tells Ritzau.

Women’s education, economy and parental rights are among the indicators used in the listing.

Eilsøe Mikkelsen says that most of those at the top of the list compare well on most indicators, with only marginal differences between them.

Worst on the listing is Niger at Number 165, with Afghanistan (last year’s lowest), Yemen, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Eritrea and Chad just above.

“There have been some small and welcome improvements in Afghanistan that have made a difference. The famine in Niger has also meant that malnutrition is much worse than previously and that has pulled Niger down,” Eilsøe Mikkelsen says.

Trained personnel are only present at a third of all births in Niger, while trained personnel are present at all Norwegian births. According to Save the Children, girls go to school on average 14 years longer in Norway than in Niger.

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