Established in 2005, PMNCH is the world’s largest alliance for women’s, children’s and adolescents’ health and well-being, with +1,300 partner organizations working together through 10 constituency groups: partner governments, donors and foundations, NGOs, adolescent and youth groups, private sector organizations, health professional associations, academic and research institutions, global financing mechanisms, inter-governmental organizations, and UN agencies. PMNCH is hosted by the World Health Organization, based in Geneva.

The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (PMNCH) aims to mobilize, align and amplify the voices of partners to advocate for women’s, children’s and adolescents’ health and well-being, particularly the most vulnerable.

PMNCH was launched in September 2005 when 80 organizations belonging to the Partnership for Safe Motherhood and Newborn Health, the Healthy Newborn Partnership and the Child Survival Partnership joined forces. By uniting and working as one partnership they could do more to accelerate action by partners and countries to achieve Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 4 (reduce child mortality) and 5 (improve maternal health).

The vision and goals of the new Partnership—The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health (PMNCH) —were outlined in "The Delhi Declaration" – a landmark statement developed by participants of "Lives in the Balance: The Partnership Meeting for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health", held in New Delhi, India, 7-9 April 2005.

In 2015, the Every Woman Every Child Global Strategy for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health was launched to reflect the shift from the MDGs to the Sustainable Development Goals.  The updated Global Strategy, which has guided PMNCH’s work since 2016, takes a more holistic view of health, moving beyond survival to well-being and social transformation.

More than 15 years since PMNCH was launched, the organization has undergone a significant rebrand in name (now referred to simply as PMNCH) and appearance.