President Edgar Lungu has declared maternal and prenatal deaths a public health emergency in Zambia.
The President said the country is losing approximately 10 to 15 women per week due to pregnancy related causes.
He has noted with sadness that in 2018, 786 women died due to pregnancy related complications.
According to ZNBC, the Head of State has called for heightened interventions to ensure no woman dies while giving birth.
He has also called for a stop to cultural and religious beliefs including other practices which may impede the country’s quest to attain good maternal and prenatal health.
President Lungu said this today when he officially launched the 2019 National Health Week at the Olympic Youth Development Centre in Lusaka.
He further said it is disheartening that 23 percent of all deaths in the country are due to non-communicable diseases, most of which are preventable.
President Lungu has also expressed concern over high levels of alcohol and other substance abuse by young people in the country.
He said the scenario has potential to ruin the country’s future if Left unaddressed.
And Swedish Ambassador to Zambia, Henrik Cederin said the National Health Week highlights Zambia’s progress towards universal health coverage.
Meanwhile, US Ambassador to Zambia Daniel Foote has urged all Zambians to get screened for HIV and that those living with the virus should get Anti-Retroviral Therapy to achieve epidemic control by 2020.
And Health Minister Chitalu Chilufya said President Lungu has expressed political will to promote health of all Zambians.
The theme for this year’s National Health Week is Promoting Health and Well-being towards Universal Health Coverage, my responsibility.
Has this just occurred to you sir? No drugs, no facilities, shortage of health workers…need I go on?
Meantime we can buy fire trucks for 1 million dollars.
Meantime you can buy new presidential jets for yourself when you already have one.
Clearly you care nothing for these deaths you are talking about. Just look service.
@journeyman you have said it all ECL is quite something we are all running out of words
The 786 women died because they were not evacuated to SA or India. That’s how poor our health system is.
Let’s ensure all risk pregnancies are now included on evacuation list and ensure the 80mil Jet is made available for emergency evacuations.
Finally, the country has awakened from the slumber. Thankyou your Excellence for standing up for the mothers and children while the Minister and his Medical Association were asleep.
Well our politicians just have to say something, even if either they don’t know what they are talking about or they are just in campaign mode. Just look at the promise to re-open Mulungushi Textiles in Kabwe. It’s like resurrecting a person who has been dead for 30 years, I mean the state of the body, decomposed. Now even Jesus resurrected after just three days.
Why should mothers die coz of negligence by unqualified health personnel. Mujajati was right to introduce those exams.We have nurses who don’t care about the lives of pipo. We don’t know where these pipo get their training. Watching mothers dying is so sad in this modern world.we have doctors and nice who have no experience to help these women. Chitalu Chilufya is using qualifications instead of experience to appoint pipo on certain positions.When it comes to maternity issues don’t change workers anyhow.U can’t be changing pipo from one department to another.You’re playing with human lives.The Health minister is responsible for the increase of deaths.It’s an acceptable.He should resign on moral grounds.When it comes to giving birth experience matters.This country awe mwe bushe…
Sad indeed to lose mothers because of a condition that should bring great joy to the family. I listened to Dr. Malama on radio today. And what I took from him was that among all the good reason we might have that lead to maternal death is lack or very low health seeking behaviours among some pregnant women and their spouses. This is a key issue requiring immediate action. When antenatal care is commenced early risk of maternal death is greatly reduced.
Men let’s support our women and lets encourage ourselves to start early antenatal visits!!!!