Photo Exhibition- Uganda
November 17, 2010
Nairobi, Kenya
In July 2010, ABANTU for Development in partnership with the African Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET), UN Millennium Campaign, the Solidarity for African Women’s Rights (SOAWR) Coalition and other collaborating partners, organized the East African Caravan on Maternal Health. The Caravan traveled through Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Uganda to bring to light the challenges African women experience during pregnancy and child-birth. The Caravan brought out clearly what these women go through, especially the ones giving birth in rural areas.
Statistics show that sub-Saharan Africa has the leading maternal mortality rate in the world, with about 700 African women dying everyday from preventable pregnancy and childbirth related complications. The Caravan’s goal was to advocate for African Heads of state and government, policy makers, civil society, health care providers and community members to Act Now to address this crisis.
Speaking at the launch of the Photo Exhibition at Alliance Francaise Nairobi on November 17, 2010, Kenya’s Minister for Public Health and Sanitation, Hon. Beth Mugo, represented by Dr. Shiphrah Kuria, the Head of the Division of Reproductive Health (DRH), said that with only 5 years remaining, Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 5 on maternal health remains the least likely goal to be attained in Sub-Saharan Africa. Currently in Kenya for example, only 46% of deliveries are attended to by a skilled health professional, which is one of the key indicators for MDG 5.
She reported that the Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation, through the economic stimulus package, is upgrading existing health facilities and putting up new ones in every constituency in the country. In addition to this the ministry is planning to boost human resources by deploying additional health workers per constituency and increasing yearly procurement of essential drugs and equipment. Family planning and other Mother-to-Child Heath services provided free of charge in lower level facilities is also part of the package. She applauded the organizers of the Caravan for carrying out a campaign that would go a long way in terms of highlighting the importance of respecting African women’s right to health, in particular reproductive health.
In her remarks, FEMNET Executive Director Norah Matovu Winyi noted that maternal health falls under the broader scope of sexual and reproductive health, which needs to be tackled from a right based approach because it is a matter of life and survival. She emphasized that citizens need to hold governments accountable for the availability, accessibility, affordability and quality of health services for women, and call for improving a wide range of sexual and reproductive services such as access to family planning, pre-and post natal care and access to emergency obstetric services including access to the right information.
Dr. Charles Abugre of the UN Millennium Campaign- Africa region urged citizens not to sit back and wait for the government to deliver on their commitments to maternal health, but to actively demand for their right to health to be respected and realized.
A guest that attended the exhibition was touched by one of the pictures of a woman that died while waiting to be attended to. She said “…the picture of the Mbarara woman dying as a result of loss of blood while awaiting to be attended sums up the day to day situation of an African woman. This is true and it happens to many women. It’s sad….”
The East African Caravan Photo Exhibition will remain open to the public up to November 28, 2010. We welcome you all to a visual walk through the crisis of maternal mortality in East Africa.
By Ruth Dede,
Advocacy and Communications Intern
FEMNET
intern2@femnet.or.ke
Sure maternal deaths are preventable.Pregnancy takes 40-42 weeks.There is eough time to prepare whether home deliverly or hospital deliverly.Unfortunitely there is even no statistics in a village of how many pregnant women there are.There is alot of talk about maternal mortality but little attention is directed to averting the causes.Why is it the policy makers are able to avert malaria epidemics,HIV and the likes? Because they assume a pregnant mother is well till danger comes.Let the caravan push for village involvement in care pf pregnant mother.It hurts.PREGNANT MOTHER WALKS TODAY DOING HER DUTIES,GOES INTO LABOUR AND IN HOURS SHE IS NO MORE.
Mercy