Emerging Mobile Health Technologies for Improving Birth Preparedness and Antenatal Care Utilization in Sub-Saharan Africa

Background: Maternal and neonatal mortality in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) remains the highest globally, with the region accounting for approximately seventy percent of all maternal deaths worldwide. Sub-optimal antenatal care (ANC) utilisation and inadequate birth preparedness and complication readiness (BPCR) are key modifiable contributors. Emerging mobile health (mHealth) technologies, including SMS messaging, smartphone applications, conversational agents, wearable diagnostics and teleconsultation platforms, have been proposed as scalable adjuncts to facility-based maternity care. However, the volume, modality mix and outcome evidence across SSA have not been systematically mapped. Objective: To systematically identify and synthesise the available evidence on emerging mHealth technologies used to improve birth preparedness and ANC utilisation among pregnant women in SSA, and to characterise their design, implementation modalities, outcomes reported and gaps for future research and nursing practice. Methods: A scoping review was conducted following the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) methodology and reported per the PRISMA-ScR checklist. PubMed/MEDLINE, CINAHL, Scopus, Web of Science, African Index Medicus and grey-literature sources were searched for peer-reviewed and institutional reports published between January 2015 and March 2025. Two reviewers independently screened titles, abstracts and full texts against pre-specified eligibility criteria. A standardised data-charting form captured study characteristics, mHealth modality, BPCR or ANC outcomes, and implementation themes. Results: Sixty-two records met the inclusion criteria. SMS and unidirectional messaging dominated early reports, while smartphone applications, artificial-intelligence chatbots, mobile ultrasound, wearable foetal monitors and teleconsultation platforms have proliferated since 2019. Reported effects were strongest for ANC visit attendance, early ANC initiation, maternal knowledge of danger signs and BPCR plan completion. Implementation barriers included infrastructural (electricity, connectivity), user-level (digital literacy, gendered phone access) and health-system (workload, interoperability) factors. Few studies reported cost-effectiveness, equity-stratified outcomes or postnatal linkages. Conclusion: Emerging mHealth technologies offer promising adjuncts to conventional ANC and BPCR strategies in SSA, with growing evidence of behavioural and knowledge gains. Rigorous multi-country trials, equity-focused evaluations, nursing-led implementation research and integration with the eight-contact WHO ANC model are needed to translate these gains into maternal and neonatal mortality reductions.