Maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health: challenges for the next decade

The Millennium Development Goals era achieved substantial improvements in the health of women and children. Yet progress was uneven and many women and children still suffer from preventable mortality and morbidity. The United Nations Secretary General's Global Strategy for Women's, Children's and Adolescents' Health (2016-2030) set out an ambitious 'survive, thrive and transform' agenda for countries as they accelerate progress towards the health-related Sustainable Development Goals. This review highlights aspects of 'survive, thrive and transform' that have had strong traction globally, namely quality of care and humanitarian settings for 'survive', early childhood development and adolescent health for 'thrive' and community engagement and a sustainable environment for 'transform'.