Government has described the maternal mortality ratio across Africa and the rest of the world as a source of shame.
Acting Heath Minister Peter Daka says midwives, being skilled birth attendants are important in ensuring that pregnancies are well managed and succeed in safely delivering healthy children while safeguarding the health of women.
Mr. Daka says through ensuring equity of access to affordable cost effective and quality health care, government has pledged to secure the health of all Zambians.
He said this in Lusaka today when he officiated at the joint International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) and United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Capacity Building workshop under the theme “Investing in Midwifery Skills: To accelerate progress towards MDG number five.”
Mr. Daka who is also Minister of Lands urged delegates from over 15 countries, mostly from Africa, to deliberate on how best to improve midwifery services in Africa, Asia and Latin America towards the improvement of maternal and child health.
He said according to the World Health Organisation (WHO) an estimated 530,000 women die each year from complications of pregnancy and childbirth with over 90 percent of them being in South Asia and Sub Saharan Africa.
The Minister said WHO further estimated that 10 to 20 million women annually suffer severe health problems such as fistula as a result of pregnancy and child birth.
He said these and other related statistics coupled with the fact that at least one woman dies every minute from complications related to pregnancy and child birth, are saddening.
Mr Daka said in Zambia, the maternal mortality ratio is 591 per 100, 000 live births, saying though the ratio has dropped from 729 over the past five years, government still acknowledges that this is still unacceptably high.
And speaking earlier, UNFPA Country Representative Duah Owusu-Sarfo said scaling up of midwifery in countries with high levels of maternal and newborn morbidity will greatly contribute to the achievement of MDG number five which aims at improving maternal health.
Mr Owusu-Sarfo said midwives also provide skilled newborn care to achieve MDG number four that aims at reducing child mortality.
He said each year in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia more than one million infants die within their first 24 hours of life due to lack of adequate health services including midwifery care.
ZANIS
Please take care of our mothers. Every person comes from a mother. It is a shame indeed to see our mothers dying. Every mother is so dear to a people and must be protected.
These numbers are jaw dropping. We as a country must invest in quality health care. RB, this should be your focus. Help improve our standard of living!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
African leaders must learn to value life why have such cruel govts;; it is a shame to mention such things when money intended for such purposes is being wasted .stollen and no one of our leaders say nothing, please be kind to people who put in those offices ;; is it because you send your wives to south africa to deliver it really pains us as Zambians to hear such stories in our nation